The Post is recognized with five Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing awards
Michelle Singletary won the top award in the Commentary/Opinion division, Large Market, for her multimedia series 'Scammed,' about a Maryland woman cheated out of her life savings by a con artist posing as an FBI agent. The judges called the seven-part series 'a 'wow' story that puts the reader deep inside a sophisticated financial scam operation,' praised Michelle for going the extra mile in her reporting and applauded how the videos, illustrations and other visual elements 'further humanize the story, vividly demonstrating how scam victims are manipulated.'
Koen De Gussem illustrated the project, with animation by Charlotte Dua, Karolien Raeymaekers and Bavo Croes. The project was edited by Robbie DiMesio, and included contributions from Kathleen Rudell-Brooks, Audrey Valbuena, Josh Carroll, Amber Ferguson, Tom LeGro, Haley Hamblin, Junne Alcantara, KC Schaper, Rivan Stinson, Sophie Yarbrough, Maite Fernandez Simon, Megan Bridgeman and Kathleen Floyd.
Michelle and Charla Freeland also won in the podcast/audio category for their Post Reports podcast episode on the project, which the judges said 'leaps off the page, or in this case, out of the speakers.'
These are Michelle's third and fourth SABEW honors: In 2022, she won for a series of columns about how the Internal Revenue Service is failing low-income citizens. And in 2019 she became the first woman of color to be presented with SABEW's Distinguished Achievement Award.
The Post also won in the retail category, where Lauren Kaori Gurley, Emmanuel Martinez and Julia Mata were honored for a selection of investigative stories about child labor in the fast-food industry. 'The investigation had a big impact, pushing powerful investment managers and public treasurers to demand McDonald's take tougher steps to address child labor violations at its franchises,' the judges wrote. The judges also praised a gorgeously rendered comic about a high school senior illegally scheduled to work late and long hours at a Los Angeles McDonald's. The project was edited by Jen Liberto.
In addition, SABEW judges recognized Post journalists with two honorable mentions:
The winners will be recognized at SABEW's annual conference April 3-5 in Washington, D.C. Please join us in congratulating these remarkable journalists!
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Additionally, TAC managers at 11 locations reported that the kiosks were not connected to a working printer, which prevented taxpayers from printing tax forms or other documents. When a kiosk becomes inoperable or encounters issues that cannot be resolved with basic troubleshooting, the TAC manager submits a service ticket to the third-party contractor. And then… they wait. According to IRS management, 137 service tickets were outstanding from February 2023 through August 2024. TIGTA found that the time needed to close 113 of those tickets ranged from 30 days or less to 463 days (most took between 151-365 days to resolve), while 24 tickets were open (meaning the contractor did not perform work on these tickets). Status of IRS Kiosk Service Tickets Kelly Phillips Erb Although some service tickets were marked as completed, IRS management indicated that this does not necessarily mean that the kiosk was restored or that the problem was resolved. The contractor marked 75 of the 137 service tickets (54%) with a 'closed – no response' status. This status can mean that some action was taken, but the issue was not resolved. TIGTA had previously found the same problem at the TACs: managers indicated that the contractor was slow to respond to service requests. Kiosks were left inoperable for long periods of time. That means the IRS paid about $500,000 each year to a contractor who did not deliver services on time. After those findings, according to TIGTA, the IRS indicated the plan was to work with the existing contractor to make the kiosks operational by December 31, 2024. However, in January 2025, TIGTA visited eight TACs with inoperable kiosks and found the machines were still not working. Next Steps Despite those challenges, taxpayers who use the kiosks seem to like them. 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Today, TIGTA provides audit, investigative, and evaluation services to promote integrity, efficiency, and economy in the administration of the nation's tax system. While TIGTA sits organizationally within the Department of the Treasury and reports to the Secretary of the Treasury and to Congress, the agency is considered to be independent. You can read the full TIGTA report here. Forbes Government Watchdog Confirms Mass Exodus Of IRS Employees—More Cuts Are Expected By Kelly Phillips Erb Forbes How Much Money Has The IRS Spent This Year? By Kelly Phillips Erb Forbes Taxpayer Advocate Calls 2025 Filing Season A Success But Waves Warning Flag On Cuts By Kelly Phillips Erb
