Today marks the 99th year of the Pulitzer Prize. The prestigious award is named after famed Hungarian journalist Joseph Pulitzer, who is credited as being the first to champion journalism training in academic institutions.
These are the winners of the 2015 Pulitzer Prize by category. For journalism:
Breaking News Photography
St. Louis Post-Dispatch photography staff for its coverage of protests after unarmed teen Michael Brown was gunned down by police in Ferguson, Missouri.
Finalists in this category were Mauricio Lima, Sergey Ponomarev, and Uriel Sinai of the New York Times, and Tyler Hicks, Sergey Ponomarev, and Wissam Nassar of the New York Times.
Commentary
Lisa Falkenberg of the Houston Chronicle for her series of columns on Alfred Dewayne Brown, who was convicted of killing a police officer but, she argues, was likely innocent.
Finalists in this category were the late David Carr of the New York Times, and Matthew Kaminski of the Wall Street Journal.
Criticism
Mary McNamara of the Los Angeles Times for her collection of pieces on the relationship between cultural shifts and television.
Finalists in this category were Manohla Dargis of The New York Times, and Stephanie Zacharek of The Village Voice.
Editorial Cartooning
Adam Zyglis of the Buffalo News, who, according to Pulitzer judges, "used strong images to connect with readers while conveying layers of meaning in a few words."
Finalists in this category were Kevin Kallaugher of the Baltimore Sun, and Dan Perkins, drawing as Tom Tomorrow, of Daily Kos.
Editorial Writing
Kathleen Kingsbury of the Boston Globe for her "Service Not Included" series, which shed light on income inequality in the restaurant industry.
Finalists in this category were Tony Messenger and Kevin Horrigan of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and Jill Burcum of the Star Tribune in Minneapolis.
Explanatory Reporting
Zachary R. Mider of Bloomberg News for "The Greatest Tax Story Ever Told," which described how U.S. corporations get away with tax evasion.
Finalists in this category were John Ingold, Joe Amon and Lindsay Pierce of the Denver Post, and Joan Biskupic, Janet Roberts, and John Shiffman of Reuters.
Feature Photography
Daniel Berehulak, freelance photographer for the New York Times, for his visual documentary of the spread of Ebola in West Africa.
Finalists in this category were Bulent Kilic of Agence France-Presse, and Bob Owen, Jerry Lara and Lisa Krantz of the San Antonio Express-News.
Feature Writing
Diana Marcum of the Los Angeles Times for "Scenes From California's Dust Bowl," a report on the ongoing droughts in the Central Valley.
Finalists in this category were Sarah Schweitzer of the Boston Globe, and Jennifer Gonnerman of The New Yorker.
International Reporting
New York Times staff for its coverage of the Ebola epidemic in Sierra Leone, Liberia, and Guinea.
Finalists in this category were Richard Marosi and Don Bartletti of the Los Angeles Times, and Ned Parker and a team from Reuters.
Investigative Reporting
This category resulted in a tie.
Eric Lipton of the New York Times won for his "Courting Favor" series, which exposed the relationship between lobbyists and lawmakers.
The Wall Street Journal staff was also awarded the prize for "Medicare Unmasked," a project that allowed Americans rare access to vital health care information.
The finalist in this category was Chicago Tribune's David Jackson, Gary Marx, and Duaa Eldeib.
Local Reporting
Rob Kuznia, Rebecca Kimitch, and Frank Suraci of the Daily Breeze in Torrance, California, for their lengthy investigation of a local school district's superintendent.
Finalists in this category were Joe Mahr, Joseph Ryan, and Matthew Walberg of the Chicago Tribune, and Ziva Branstetter and Cary Aspinwall of the Tulsa World.
National Reporting
Carol D. Leonnig of the Washington Post for her extensive reporting on the United States Secret Service.
Finalists in this category included Marisa Taylor, Jonathan Landay, and Ali Watkins of McClatchy Newspapers, and Walt Bogdanich and Mike McIntire of the New York Times.
Public Service
Post and Courier, South Carolina, for its series "Till Death Do Us Part," which exposed the state as one of the deadliest in the country for women.
Finalists for this category included the Boston Globe and the Wall Street Journal.
Breaking News Reporting
The Seattle Times staff, for its digital coverage of the Oso landslide that killed 43 people.
Finalists for this category included the Buffalo News staff and the Los Angeles Times staff.
Fiction
Anthony Doerr's All the Light We Cannot See, a novel inspired by World War II.
Finalists in this category were Let Me Be Frank With You by Richard Ford, The Moor's Account by Laila Lalami, and Lovely, Dark, Deep by Joyce Carol Oates.
Drama
Stephen Adly Guirgis' Between Riverside and Crazy, a dark comedy about a retired police officer.
Finalists in this category were Marjorie Prime, by Jordan Harrison, and Father Comes Home from the Wars (Parts 1, 2, 3) by Suzan-Lori Parks.
History
Elizabeth A. Fenn's Encounters at the Heart of the World: A History of the Mandan People, which chronicled the life of the indigenous Mandan in North and South Dakota.
Finalists in this category were Empire of Cotton: A Global History by Sven Beckert, and An Empire on the Edge: How Britain Came to Fight America by Nick Bunker.
Biography or Autobiography
David I. Kertzer's The Pope and Mussolini: The Secret History of Pius XI and the Rise of Fascism in Europe, a dual biography on the two historic icons.
Finalists in this category were Louis Armstrong: Master of Modernism by Thomas Brothers, and Stalin: Volume I: Paradoxes of Power, 1878–1928 by Stephen Kotkin.
Poetry
Gregory Pardlo's Digest, a news-drenched collection of poetry rooted in the 21st century.
Finalists in this category were Reel to Reel by Alan Shapiro, and Compass Rose by Arthur Sze.
General Nonfiction
Elizabeth Kolbert's The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History, which explores mounting concerns over biodiversity.
Finalists in this category were No Good Men Among the Living by Anand Gopal, and Age of Ambition: Chasing Fortune, Truth, and Faith in the New China by Evan Osnos.
Music
Julia Wolfe's "Anthracite Fields," a composition for orchestra, choir, and soloists inspired by 20th century coal-mining life in Pennsylvania.
Finalists for this category were "Xiaoxiang" by Lei Liang, and "The Aristos" by John Zorn.