Jesse Bedayn, AP/Report for America Corps member, Denver; multi-platform journalist Thomas Peipert, Denver; Salt Lake City newsperson Sam Metz; San Francisco-based videographer Haven Daley, Denver-based videographer Brittany Peterson, Washington reporter Mike Balsamo; Denver reporter Colleen Slevin; Montana-based reporter Matt Brown, New York-based investigative reporter Bernard Condon and Denver photographer David Zalubowski were among the staffers who responded quickly and thoughtfully as soon as word of a mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Colorado Spring broke in the wee Sunday morning hours, resulting in all-formats response and top-notch coverage that lasted for days to come.
Bedayn began the reporting and the team’s combined efforts kicked off a steady stream of community reaction, investigative updates and sensitive profiles, including Bedayn’s poignant story on the first known victim that moved the night of the shooting.