Joe Wyatt
Published April 13, 2017

Story By Jenna Gibson, Ranger Reporter:

AC alum Denisha Kranthoven’s training at Amarillo College has led to a Pulitzer. This week, the former mass media student learned she was part of the news team that just won a Pulitzer Prize..

D. KranthovenKranthoven is a designer and copy editor for the East Bay Times in Oakland, Calif., which won a Pulitzer for Breaking News Reporting. She worked on photos, headlines and inside pages for the award-winning coverage. “Being part of a Pulitzer winning team is something that I never expected. I can’t even begin to explain how surprised I am.”

The Pulitzer jurors recognized the the newspaper staff for their coverage of the “’Ghost Ship’” fire, which killed 36 people at a warehouse party, and for reporting after the tragedy that exposed the city’s failure to take actions that might have prevented it.”

“Though this is a high honor, the reality of it is that 36 people lost their lives,” Kranthoven said. “All of the work that the reporters, designers, photographers and editors put in was to make sure that the community knew the truth about what happened and how it can be prevented in the future. That’s the real goal. I’m honored to be part of a group that puts people first,” she added.

Prior to going to work for the East Bay Times, Kranthoven worked for the Amarillo Globe News. While at AC, she was active with AC Student Media, working as an artist and page editor for The Ranger and serving as two-time editor of The Current.

The Pulitzer prize is the top award for  journalism achievement. Established in 1917, the prizes are administrated by Columbia University in New York and are given annually in 21 categories.