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01-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
2025 News and Documentary Emmy Awards nominations include the Biden-Trump debate, plus '60 Minutes' in Outstanding Edited Interview
The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences has announced its nominations for the 2025 News and Documentary Emmy Awards. The game-changing CNN Presidential Debate between then-President Joe Biden and then-former President Donald Trump is up for a bid in Outstanding Technical Excellence – News. It was Biden's poor showing in that debate that led many in his party to urge him to step down from seeking reelection, which he eventually did. More from GoldDerby How one 'obsessive' reality TV fan created 'Crypto: The Game,' an emerging media contender that's poised to shake up the Emmys Daniel Dae Kim becomes first AAPI Tony nominee for Lead Actor in a Play; record 7 Asian acting bids Quinta Brunson is only the third Black woman to host 'SNL' multiple times Another important milestone from the 2024 election cycle that received a nom this morning is 60 Minutes' segment with the Democratic ticket (Kamala Harris and Tim Walz) in the category of Outstanding Edited Interview. Trump is currently suing CBS News for another segment in that same episode, in which Bill Whitaker interviewed Harris solo, alleging it was deceptively edited. These 46th annual kudos honor the best programming content from more than 2,200 submissions that aired in the calendar year 2024. There are more than 980 peer professionals from across television and streaming/digital media who serve as judges. "We are thrilled to recognize the extraordinary talent and relentless commitment of this year's nominees,' said Adam Sharp, 0resident and CEO of NATAS. 'In a rapidly evolving media landscape, their innovative storytelling and unwavering pursuit of truth continue to inspire and inform audiences worldwide. We are proud to honor their remarkable work.' The winners in all 63 categories will be awarded across two separate ceremonies at the Palladium Times Square in New York: June 25 for news, and June 26 for documentaries. The awards shows can be streamed live at and via The Emmys apps. Here are the 2025 News and Documentary Emmy Awards nominations: Outstanding Live News Program ABC World News Tonight with David Muir, ABC The CBS Evening News with Norah O'Donnell, CBS CBS Mornings, CBS Good Morning America, ABC NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt, NBC News Top Story with Tom Llamas, NBC News NOW Outstanding Recorded News Program CBS Sunday Morning, CBS Dateline NBC, NBC News In Real Life, Evident | Scripps News Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper, CNN Worldwide Outstanding Emerging Journalist Gerardo del Valle, ProPublica | The Texas Tribune | Univision Skyler Henry, CBS Jay O'Brien, ABC News Katie Polglase, CNN Worldwide Natasha Zouves, NewsNation Outstanding Breaking News Coverage Hurricane Helene Landfall, Tracking Helene, The Weather Channel Hurricane Milton, CNN Worldwide Hurricane Milton State of Emergency, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir, ABC On the Brink, PBS News Hour South Korea Declares Marital Law, CNN Worldwide The Trump Assassination Attempt, The New York Times Outstanding Continuing News Coverage – Short Form Clarissa Ward: The Fall of Damascus, CNN Worldwide Gang-Fueled Unrest in Haiti, CNN Worldwide Inside Syria: Assad Overthrown, ABC News Myanmar's Civil War, BBC News Nick Paton Walsh Covers the War in Ukraine, CNN Worldwide Outstanding Continuing News Coverage – Long Form Abortion in America: Fallout from the Dobbs Decision, Nightline, ABC Border Coverage, 60 Minutes, CBS News Donie O'Sullivan: MisinfoNation Trilogy, CNN Worldwide Sudan's Civil War, PBS News Hour A Week in Israel & The Pager Plot, 60 Minutes, CBS News Outstanding Light Feature – Short Form African Migration: The Deadly Atlantic Route, ABC News Nightline and ABC News Prime, ABC Empty Rooms, CBS Sunday Morning, CBS Face to Face, CBS Sunday Morning, CBS How Tyson Captured All The Pork You Eat (And Made Billions), More Perfect Union Return to Normandy, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir, ABC Outstanding Light Feature – Long Form Bhutan, 60 Minutes, CBS News The Cap Arcona, 60 Minutes, CBS News Last Lands: Central Africa, ABC News Live and Global Conservation, ABC The Man Who Feeds Gaza's Children, Business Insider The Moses Videos, In the Shadows with Jason Bellini, Scripps News The Playing Field, The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper, CNN Worldwide Outstanding Hard News Feature – Short Form Haiti: Inside the City Ruled by Over 100 Gangs, World News America, BBC News [BBC World Service, BBC World News America] How Indiscriminate Israeli Fire Killed Half a Family in Gaza, CNN Worldwide A Mother's Tragic Tale from War-Torn Gaza, CNN Worldwide Nowhere to Call Home: The Working Homeless, Matter of Fact with Soledad O'Brien, Hearst Television Sde Teiman: Israeli Whistleblowers Detail Abuse, CNN Worldwide She Survived an Airstrike that Killed Her Entire Family in Gaza, The New York Times The Walking Route, CNN Worldwide Outstanding Hard News Feature – Long Form All That Remains, Fault Lines, Al Jazeera International USA Caught in a Coup, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Children of the Darien Gap, Fault Lines, Al Jazeera International USA A Hidden War, In Real Life, Evident | Scripps News On the Front Lines of Sudan's Forgotten War, The Wall Street Journal Outstanding Investigative News Coverage – Short Form Dealing the Dead, NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt, NBC News Europe's Migration Crisis, BBC News Grandmother Shot and Killed Fleeing Gaza, CNN Worldwide Hospitals in Peril, The Looting of Steward Health Care, CBS News Maine Shooting: Missed Warnings, Scripps News Investigates, Scripps News Outstanding Investigative News Coverage – Long Form Baby Heaven: The Buried Stories of Camp Lejeune, NBC News NOW Documenting Police Use of Force, FRONTLINE, PBS [The Associated Press, The Howard Centers for Investigative Journalism] The Drug Mule Scam, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] How 'Trophy' Videos Link Paramilitary Commanders to War Crimes in Sudan, The New York Times Missed Warnings, Scripps News Investigates, Scripps News Targeting Americans, 60 Minutes, CBS Outstanding Live News Special 2024 Total Solar Eclipse: Through the Eyes of NASA, NASA+ CNN Presidential Town Hall with, Vice President Kamala Harris, CNN Worldwide Decision 2024: Election Night, NBC News Special Report: Assassination Attempt, NBC News Total Eclipse of the Heartland, CBS Your Voice Your Vote: The 2024 Election, ABC News Outstanding Recorded News Special Exodus: Global Migration, ABC News Live, ABC Growing Broke: Forever Chemicals in America's Heartland, NewsNation Prime, NewsNation Hostages: The Road Home, The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper, CNN Worldwide Jimmy Carter: A Full Life, 20/20, ABC Surviving Nova, VICE Special Report, VICE News Outstanding News Discussion & Analysis America First: A Fareed Zakaria Special, CNN Worldwide American Autocracy: It Could Happen Here, Deadline | White House, MSNBC Elliott County Voted for Democrats For 144 Years. Then Came Trump…, More Perfect Union Independent America, In Real Life, Evident | Scripps News Israel-Hamas War, Face the Nation, CBS Outstanding News Discussion & Analysis – Editorial and Opinion Deadlock: An Election Story, PBS [Room 608, Inc., GBH Educational Foundation] Grab Your Calculators. We're Going to Jail., The New York Times Opinion, The New York Times How Tennessee Keeps Nearly Half a Million People From Voting, The New York Times Opinion, The New York Times I Put Him on Death Row. He Shouldn't Die., The New York Times Opinion, The New York Times Two Weeks Inside Gaza's Ruined Hospitals, The New York Times Opinion, The New York Times Outstanding Live Interview – Short Form Breaking News: The Assassination Attempt of Donald Trump, BBC News Interview with Jake Larson, Amanpour, CNN Worldwide Interview with Oklahoma School Superintendent Ryan Walters, Newsroom with Pamela Brown, CNN Worldwide Interview with the Parents of Breonna Moffett, NewsNight with Abby Phillip, CNN Worldwide Interview with Vice President Kamala Harris, Anderson Cooper 360, CNN Worldwide Outstanding Live Interview – Long Form Interview with JD Vance, State of the Union with Jake Tapper and Dana Bash, CNN Worldwide Interview with the Parents of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Anderson Cooper 360, CNN Worldwide Interview with Trump Advisor Stephen Miller, The Beat with Ari Melber, MSNBC One on One with President Biden, Good Morning America, ABC News President Biden Exclusive, NBC News Specials & Nightly News, NBC News Outstanding Edited Interview Celine's Story: An NBC News Special with Hoda Kotb, NBC News Special Report, NBC News The Democratic Ticket, 60 Minutes, CBS News Ketanji Brown Jackson, CBS Sunday Morning, CBS Pope Francis, 60 Minutes, CBS News Prisoner in Russia: The Brittney Griner Interview, 20/20, ABC Outstanding Science and Technology Coverage Darwin's War, In Real Life, Scripps News Farming the Water, Hope in the Water, PBS [Intuitive Content] Growing Broke: Forever Chemicals in America's Heartland, NewsNation Prime, NewsNation [NewsNation Films] The Promise, 60 Minutes, CBS News Quantum Arms Race, The Future with Hannah Fry, Bloomberg Sextortion, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Outstanding Climate, Environment and Weather Coverage Apes, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Last Lands: Indonesia and Ecuador, ABC News Live in Partnership with Global Conservation, ABC Maui's Deadly Firestorm, FRONTLINE, PBS Relief, NC, 60 Minutes, CBS News Toxic Trifecta, PBS News Hour, PBS Warning to the World: Australia's Climate Disaster, The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper, CNN Worldwide Outstanding Health or Medical Coverage Black Market Meds, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Body Parts, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Lie to Fly, The New York Times Presents, FX | Hulu [The New York Times, Left/Right (a North Road company)] Master of the Mind, 60 Minutes, CBS News Starving Gaza, Fault Lines, Al Jazeera International USA Twice Harmed: Asylum Seekers Face Sexual Violence & Abortion Bans, Alex Wagner Tonight, MSNBC What's My Life Worth?, The New York Times Opinion, The New York Times Outstanding Arts, Culture or Entertainment Coverage 10 Million Names, ABC News Live, ABC Bruce Springsteen: Backstage and Backstreets, ABC News Studios, ABC Finding His Voice, CBS Sunday Morning, CBS Illegal Gambling, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] The Last Heroes of Normandy, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir and Nightline, ABC Netflix is Betting Big on Latin America, The Circuit with Emily Chang, Bloomberg Outstanding Business, Consumer or Economic Coverage Migrant Smugglers, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Raising the Stakes: America's Growing Sports Gambling Addiction, CBS Reports, CBS Trashed: The Secret World of Plastic Exports, ABC News Live, ABC The True Cost of Mining Electric Car Battery Metals, True Cost, Business Insider The Trustbuster, 60 Minutes, CBS News Outstanding Crime and Justice Coverage Assassins, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Breakdown in Maine, FRONTLINE, PBS [Portland Press Herald, Maine Public Radio] Hash Smugglers, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] How Russian Hackers Stole Millions from U.S. Investors — Putin's Trader, CNBC Sins of the Parents: The Crumbley Trials, ABC News Studios, Hulu Outstanding Current Affairs Documentary 64 Days: The Insurrection Playbook, Goldcrest Films [Saboteur Media, Atomized Studios Limited, Smuggler Films] Bread & Roses, Apple TV+ [Apple Original Films, Eyan Foundation, Extracurricular] Print it Black, ABC News Live, ABC We Will Dance Again, Paramount+ [See It Now Studios, HOT 8, BBC Storyville] A Year of War: Israelis and Palestinians, FRONTLINE, PBS Outstanding Politics and Government Documentary Battleground Texas, VICE News The Body Politic, POV, PBS [ITVS, Black Public Media, Corporation For Public Broadcasting, Rowhouse, LC | Rowhouse Collective] Carville: Winning is Everything, Stupid, CNN Worldwide [Altimeter Films, CNN Films] From Russia with Lev, MSNBC [Rakontur, UTAS, Surprise Inside, MSNBC Films] The Riot Report, American Experience, PBS [GBH, 42nd Parallel Films] The Sixth, Amazon | Apple TV [Apple Original Films, A24, Change Content] Who's Afraid of Nathan Law?, POV, PBS [Pandamonium Productions LLC, Herochaser, Palm Pictures, Official, LLC] Outstanding Social Issue Documentary Daughters, Netflix [Netflix, XTR, Object & Animal, Epoch Films, Park Pictures, OPC, World of HA, Simpson Street, Two One Five] Death Without Mercy, Showtime [MTV Documentary Films, Docsville Studios, Basement Films, AMC Media Production] Name Me Lawand, POV, PBS [Pulse Films] One With the Whale, Independent Lens, PBS [Vitamin Sea Productions, Siyuqaq Incorporated, Actual Films] Two American Families: 1991-2024, FRONTLINE, PBS Outstanding Investigative Documentary American Conspiracy: The Octopus Murders, Netflix [Stardust Frames, Duplass Brothers Productions] A Dangerous Assignment: Uncovering Corruption in Maduro's Venezuela, FRONTLINE, PBS [ The Grab, Apple TV+ | Google Play | Prime Video | Vimeo | Vudu | YouTube [Center for Investigative Reporting Studios, Magnolia Pictures, Participant Media, Rocklin | Faust, Impact Partners] The Night Won't End, Fault Lines, Al Jazeera International USA South Korea's Adoption Reckoning, FRONTLINE, PBS [The Associated Press] Outstanding Historical Documentary An American Bombing: The Road to April 19th, HBO | Max [HBO Documentary Films, Blowback Productions] Fly With Me, American Experience, PBS [GBH, Sarah Colt Productions] The Sixth, Amazon | Apple TV [Change Content] Tsunami: Race Against Time, National Geographic [Blast Films] Turning Point: The Bomb and the Cold War, Netflix [Luminant Media] Outstanding Arts and Culture Documentary As We Speak: Rap Music on Trial, Paramount+ [MTV Entertainment Studios, District 33, Park Pictures, Strike Anywhere] Butterfly in the Sky, Netflix [Sidestilt Films, Window Pictures, XTR] Hollywood Black, MGM+ [Radical Media, Culture Machine, Significant Productions] King Coal, POV, PBS [Narrow Vision Endeavors, Cottage M, Drexler Films, King Coal Productions LLC, Fishbowl Films] Madu, Disney + [Disney Branded Television, Hunting Lane Films] Outstanding Science and Technology Documentary Anand Varma: Hidden Wonders, Photographer, National Geographic [Little Monster Films] Apollo 13: Survival, Netflix [Insight TWI Films, Fee Fie Foe] Hunt for the Oldest DNA, NOVA, PBS [Handful of Films, HHMI Tangled Bank Studios, NOVA/GBH, ZDF, DR Danish Broadcasting Corporation] The Space Race, National Geographic [National Geographic Documentary Films, The Kennedy/Marshall Company, Alegria Films, Cortés Filmworks, Diamond Docs] What's Next? The Future with Bill Gates, Netflix [Tremolo Productions] Outstanding Nature Documentary Attenborough and the Jurassic Sea Monster Nature, PBS Billy & Molly: An Otter Love Story, National Geographic [Silverback Films] Grizzly 399: Queen of the Tetons, Nature, PBS [Lucky 8 TV, The WNET Group] Our Living World, Netflix [Wild Space, Freeborne Media] Patrick and the Whale, Nature, PBS [Terra Mater Studios, The WNET Group] Paul Nicklen & Cristina Mittermeier: Win or Die, Photographer, National Geographic [Little Monster Films] Silverback, Nature, PBS [Off the Fence Studios, BBC, France Télévisions, Featuristic Films, The WNET Group] Outstanding Business and Economic Documentary Bitconned, Netflix [Glass Entertainment Group] Buy Now: The Shopping Conspiracy, Netflix [Grain Media] Diane von Furstenberg: Woman in Charge, Hulu [Sutter Road Picture Company, Fabiola Beracasa Beckman Media Production] The Hobby, Documentary+ [XTR] Moviepass, Moviecrash, HBO | Max [HBO Documentary Films, Unrealistic Ideas, Assemble Media, Nightbrain Pictures, Tower Way] Razing Liberty Square, Independent Lens, PBS [RLS Film, LLC] Outstanding Crime and Justice Documentary Cult Massacre: One Day In Jonestown, National Geographic [72 Films] Into the Fire: The Lost Daughter, Netflix [Tripod Media LLC, Denver & Delilah] Mastermind: To Think Like a Killer, Hulu [Campfire Studios, Lewellen Pictures, Invited by Girls, Rebecca Halpern Productions] Poisoned Ground: The Tragedy at Love Canal, American Experience, PBS [GBH, Madrona Productions] The Truth vs. Alex Jones, HBO | Max [HBO Documentary Films, AMOS Pictures] Outstanding Short Documentary The Dirty Business of Monkey Laundering, Bloomberg Investigates, Bloomberg Love To The Max, The New Yorker Motorcycle Mary, ESPN [ESPN Films, Breakwater Studios] Swept, Human Rights Watch Wings of Dust, Documentary+ [Rolling Stone Films, Skyeyes Documentaries, 42 Parallelo, 5 Stick Films Inc.] Best Documentary American Conspiracy: The Octopus Murders, Netflix [Stardust Frames, Duplass Brothers Productions] The Commandant's Shadow, HBO | Max [Warner Bros. Pictures, HBO Documentary Films, Snowstorm Productions, Creators Inc., New Mandate Films] The Grab, Apple TV+ | Google Play | Prime Video | Vimeo | Vudu | YouTube [Center for Investigative Reporting Studios, Rocklin | Faust, Magnolia Pictures, Participant Media, Impact Partners] Hollywood Black, MGM+ [Radical Media, Culture Machine, Significant Productions] Mammals, BBC America | BBC+ [BBC Studios National History Unit, France Televisions, ZDF] Queendom, Galdanova Film The Sing Sing Chronicles, MSNBC [NBC News Studios, MSNBC Films, Trilogy Films] The Sixth, Amazon | Apple TV [Apple Original Films, A24, Change Content] The Truth vs. Alex Jones, HBO | Max [HBO Documentary Films, AMOS Pictures] Outstanding News Program in Spanish Conclusiones, CNN Worldwide Noticias Telemundo con Julio Vaqueiro, Telemundo Noticiero Univision, Univision Noticiero Univision Edicion Digital, Univision Outstanding Journalist in Spanish Language Media Damià Bonmatí, Telemundo Albert Martínez, The Weather Channel en Español Pau Mosquera, CNN Worldwide Julio Vaqueiro, Telemundo Outstanding Coverage of a Breaking News Story in Spanish Atentado Contra Donald Trump, Noticiero Univision, Univision Eclipse Total, Noticias Telemundo, Telemundo Telemundo News Special Report: Inside Election Night 2024, Noticias Telemundo, Telemundo Outstanding Investigative News Coverage in Spanish Cada Vez Más Migrantes Viajan Encerrados en Tráileres por México Rumbo a Telemundo China Inc: Un Negocio Criminal de Aduanas, N+ Focus, VIX | TelevisaUnivision Deportación Infantil: el Muro Mexicano, N+ Focus, VIX | TelevisaUnivision El Darién, Cementerio Sin Cruces, Noticiero Univision, Univision La Lucha por Salvar las Últimas 8 Vaquitas Marinas del Mundo, El Último Refugio de la Vaquita Marina, VICE News NarcoFiles: Tren de Aragua, CNN Worldwide, CNN Worldwide Outstanding Feature Story in Spanish El Camino Correcto: el Largo Viaje Para Pedir Asilo de Una Familia Venezolana, ProPublica | The Texas Tribune | Univision Más y Más y Más Flores, The New York Times Nacer Sin Extremidades: la Vida de Carlos Candelario Tras la Exposición a Pesticidas de su Madre, Univision Nuestro Planeta: Voces del Cambio Climático, Telemundo Station Group To Live in a Wild Sea, The New York Times Outstanding Writing – News CBS Sunday Morning: Empty Rooms, CBS Sunday Morning, CBS Dr. Kuznetzov, 60 Minutes, CBS News Elephant V. Man, The Whole Story with Anderson Cooper, CNN Worldwide Growing Broke: Forever Chemicals in America's Heartland, NewsNation Prime, NewsNation A Mother's Tragic Tale from War-Torn Gaza, CNN Worldwide, CNN Worldwide Apes, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Outstanding Research – News Apes, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Breakdown in Maine, FRONTLINE, PBS [Portland Press Herald, Maine Public Radio] The Cap Arcona, 60 Minutes, CBS News Documenting Police Use of Force, FRONTLINE, PBS [The Associated Press, The Howard Centers for Investigative Journalism] The Hidden Autopilot Data That Reveals Why Teslas Crash, The Wall Street Journal K File Investigation in North Carolina Governor's Race, CNN Worldwide, CNN Worldwide Starving Gaza, Fault Lines, Al Jazeera International USA Outstanding Direction – News ABC News Your Voice Your Vote, The ABC News Presidential Debate, ABC Assassins, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Caught in a Coup, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] The Drug Mule Scam, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Election Night, NBC News Surviving Nova, VICE Special Report, VICE News Outstanding Video Journalism Caught in a Coup, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Hash Smugglers, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] A Hidden War, In Real Life, Evident | Scripps News Migrant Smugglers, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] On the Front Lines With Ukraine's Killer Drone Pilot, The Wall Street Journal Outstanding Editing – News Assassins, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic Children of the Darien Gap, Fault Lines, Al Jazeera International USA The Drug Mule Scam, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Illegal Gambling, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Notes of Protest: Afghanistan's Orchestra in Exile, NBC News NOW | NBC News Outstanding Graphic Design – News AFP Videographic : The International Criminal Court, AFP Four Gazans Show How War Devastated Their Coastline, Business Insider The Hidden Autopilot Data That Reveals Why Teslas Crash, The Wall Street Journal The Price of Money, Bloomberg News Spotlight, Bloomberg Rohingya Hijras Facing Transphobic Abuse and Sexual Violence, CNN Worldwide You're Being Lied To About Voter Fraud. Here's the Truth., The New York Times Opinion, The New York Times Outstanding Show Open or Title Sequence – News 2024 Total Solar Eclipse: Through the Eyes of NASA, NASA+ Assassins, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Election Night Live with Brian Williams, Prime Video [White Cherry Entertainment] Migrant Smugglers, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Total Eclipse of the Heartland, CBS News What Happened to Karen Silkwood: The Lost Tapes, Impact x Nightline, ABC | Hulu Outstanding Lighting Direction – News Assassins, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Hash Smugglers, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Illegal Gambling, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Sextortion, Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Outstanding Technical Excellence – News America Decides, Election '24, CBS News CNN Presidential Debate: President Joe Biden & Former President Donald J. Trump, CNN Worldwide NBC News: Election Night Coverage, NBC News Telemundo Decision 2024, Telemundo Trafficked: Underworlds with Mariana van Zeller, National Geographic [Muck Media] Outstanding Writing – Documentary Billy & Molly: An Otter Love Story, National Geographic [Silverback Films] Join or Die, Netflix [Delevan Street Films] King Coal, POV, PBS [Narrow Vision Endeavors, Cottage M, Drexler Films, King Coal Productions LLC, Fishbowl Films] The Night Won't End, Fault Lines, Al Jazeera International USA Poisoned Ground: The Tragedy at Love Canal, American Experience, PBS [GBH, Madrona Productions] The Space Race, National Geographic [National Geographic Documentary Films, The Kennedy/Marshall Company, Alegria Films, Cortés Filmworks, Diamond Docs] Outstanding Research – Documentary The Bibi Files, [Jigsaw Productions] China, The U.S. and the Rise of Xi Jinping, FRONTLINE, PBS The Grab, Apple TV+ | Google Play | Prime Video | Vimeo | Vudu | YouTube [Center for Investigative Reporting Studios, Magnolia Pictures, Participant Media, Rocklin | Faust, Impact Partners] Nazi Town, USA, American Experience, PBS [GBH, Pangloss Films] Our Oceans, Netflix [Wild Space, Freeborne Media, Higher Ground] Outstanding Direction – Documentary Billy & Molly: An Otter Love Story, National Geographic [Silverback Films] Daughters, Netflix [XTR, Object & Animal, Epoch Films, Park Pictures, OPC, World of HA, Simpson Street, Two One Five] Frida, Prime Video [Imagine Documentaries, TIME Studios] Madu, Disney + [Disney Branded Television, Hunting Lane Films] Poisoned Ground: The Tragedy at Love Canal, American Experience, PBS [GBH, Madrona Productions] Outstanding Cinematography – Documentary Earthsounds, Apple TV+ [Offspring Films] King Coal, POV, PBS [American Documentary | POV, Narrow Vision Endeavors, Cottage M, Drexler Films, King Coal Productions LLC, Fishbowl Films] Lions of the Skeleton Coast, Nature, PBS [Into Nature Productions, ORF Universum, Arte, WDR] Mammals, BBC America | BBC+ [BBC Studios National History Unit, France Televisions, ZDF] Our Living World, Netflix [Wild Space, Freeborne Media, Higher Ground] Secret World of Sound with David Attenborough, Netflix [CBC, Sky, Humble Bee Films] Outstanding Editing – Documentary Apollo 13: Survival, Netflix [Insight TWI Films, Fee Fie Foe] Blink, National Geographic [MRC, EYESTEELFILM, National Geographic Documentary Films, Fishbowl Films, Motive] Citizen Nation, PBS [Retro Report] Death Without Mercy, Showtime [MTV Documentary Films, Docsville Studios, Basement Films, AMC Media Production] We Will Dance Again, Paramount+ [See It Now Studios, HOT 8, BBC Storyville] Outstanding Graphic Design – Documentary Buy Now: The Shopping Conspiracy, Netflix [Grain Media] Food, Inc. 2, Apple TV+ | Amazon Prime Video | Google Play [The Food Project 2020] Frida, Prime Video [Imagine Documentaries, TIME Studios] Join or Die, Netflix [Delevan Street Films] Omnivore, Apple TV+ [Fifth Season, Film 45] Outstanding Music Composition – Documentary Billy & Molly: An Otter Love Story, National Geographic [Silverback Films] Dan Winters: Life is Once. Forever., Photographer, National Geographic [Little Monster Films] Endurance, National Geographic [A Little Dot Studios, Consequential, History Hit Production, Little Monster Films, National Geographic Documentary Films] Frida, Prime Video [Imagine Documentaries, TIME Studios] Mafia Spies, Paramount+ [CreativeChaos vmg] Outstanding Sound – Documentary Apollo 13: Survival, Netflix [Insight TWI Films, Fee Fie Foe] Billy & Molly: An Otter Love Story, National Geographic [Silverback Films] Earthsounds, Apple TV+ [Offspring Films] Mammals, BBC America | BBC+ [BBC Studios National History Unit, France Televisions, ZDF] Secret World of Sound with David Attenborough, Netflix [CBC, Sky, Humble Bee Films] Outstanding Lighting Direction – Documentary American Conspiracy: The Octopus Murders, Netflix [Stardust Frames, Duplass Brothers Productions] American Seams, POV Shorts, PBS [LA Times Studios, Paper Hat Films, The Plains] Cold Case: Who Killed JonBenét Ramsey, Netflix [RadicalMedia, Third Eye Motion Picture Company] Hitler and the Nazis: Evil on Trial, Netflix [Smuggler Entertainment, Third Eye Motion Picture Company] Separated, MSNBC [NBC News Studios, Participant Media, A Fourth Floor, Moxie Pictures Production, MSNBC Films] Outstanding Art Direction / Set Decoration / Scenic Design – Documentary Apollo 13: Survival, Netflix [Insight TWI Films, Fee Fie Foe] Glitter and Greed: The Lisa Frank Story, Prime Video [Amazon MGM Studios, Maxine Productions, Sony Pictures Television] Hitler and the Nazis: Evil on Trial, Netflix [Smuggler Entertainment, Third Eye Motion Picture Company] Separated, MSNBC [NBC News Studios, Participant Media, A Fourth Floor, Moxie Pictures Production, MSNBC Films] This Is What a Nuclear Strike Would Feel Like, The New York Times Opinion, The New York Times You're Being Lied To About Voter Fraud. Here's the Truth., The New York Times Opinion, The New York Times [Sharp As Knives] Outstanding Promotional Announcement – News Election Night, ABC News I'M IN (Image Campaign), Good Morning America, ABC No Fear, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir, ABC Sins of the Parents, ABC News Studios | Hulu Steve Kornacki Brand Campaign, Decision 2024, MSNBC [Bodega Studios, Matt Wilcox Music] Outstanding Promotional Announcement – Documentary Billy & Molly: An Otter Love Story, National Geographic [Silverback Films, Silk Factory] Blink, National Geographic [MRC, EYESTEELFILM, National Geographic Documentary Films, Fishbowl Films, Motive] Brats, ABC News Studios | Hulu The Grab, Apple TV+ | Google Play | Prime Video | Vimeo | Vudu | YouTube [Center for Investigative Reporting Studios, Magnolia Pictures, Participant Media, Rocklin | Faust, Impact Partners] Patrice: The Movie, ABC News Studios | Hulu Tsunami: Race Against Time, National Geographic [Blast Films, Aspect] Outstanding Regional News Story: Breaking/Spot News Deadly Tornado Coverage, KCCI Jet Crash on I-75, WINK News Lakewood Church Shooting, KPRC North Texas Tornadoes, WFAA This is not Normal, KUSA Outstanding Regional News Story: Investigative Coroner's Criminal Past, WWL-TV Disabled in Danger, WFAA Double Injustice, WVUE In Plane Sight, WANF-TV KARE 11 Investigates: Nowhere to Turn, KARE-TV Spit Hoods Can Be Deadly. Police Still Use Them Anyway, WTSP-TV Outstanding Regional Documentary Angels Too Soon, WTTW / PBS Desde Cero: The Migrant Journey in Chicago, WMAQ The Holly, Rocky Mountain Public Media OKC Thunder, STEPS, Oklahoma City Thunder A Towering Task: The Story of the Peace Corps, Rocky Mountain Public Media SIGN UP for Gold Derby's free newsletter with latest predictions Best of GoldDerby How one 'obsessive' reality TV fan created 'Crypto: The Game,' an emerging media contender that's poised to shake up the Emmys 'I felt my blood boil': Nicholas Alexander Chavez on playing Lyle Menendez in 'Monsters' 'I've gotten a high from the gavel': Melissa Rauch on bringing 'Night Court' back to life and crafting Judge Abby Stone Click here to read the full article.
WIRED
26-03-2025
- Entertainment
- WIRED
I Went Undercover in Crypto's Answer to ‘Squid Game.' It Nearly Broke Me
Mar 26, 2025 6:30 AM I spent 10 days competing in Crypto: The Game, a winner-takes-all contest where hundreds of players try to finesse and backstab their way to claiming a $140,000 cryptocurrency prize. Animation: Jacqui VanLiew; Getty Images I'm crouching in a seedy alleyway off Trafalgar Square, London, with my MacBook teetering on one knee. The heady reek of piss fills my nostrils. I'm hurriedly punching emoji into a dialog box in my web browser, which is prompting me for the answer to a puzzle. It's day nine of Crypto: The Game. CTG is an elimination game that takes place over 10 days, almost exclusively online. It's a sort of mutant conglomeration of ideas from Survivor , Squid Game , The Hunger Games , and The Traitors , except everything is crypto-inflected in some way. Each of the 716 players that signed up for the third season, myself included, purchased an entry NFT for $200 in cryptocurrency. The last player standing would win the $140,000 pot. I had raced to Trafalgar Square on that Tuesday afternoon—barreling through tourists like a shoplifter fleeing the law—following clues that promised a route back into the game. I had been voted out by my fellow players the previous night, but if I could solve the puzzle quickly, I might be 'resurrected' and have another shot at victory. A group of allied players and I had decoded an alphanumeric cipher to arrive at a second peculiar code. When I entered it into ChatGPT, it led to a text file that read, 'Congratulations on decoding the clue! The treasure is hidden at coordinates 51.5074° N, 0.1278° W.' I was only five minutes away. But when I arrived, panting, it was clear I had it wrong. ChatGPT had apparently hallucinated the coordinates. By the time the real answer—the string of emoji—was circulating in the chat, other players had beaten me to it. My game had come to an end. The first two editions of Crypto: The Game, which took place in February and April 2024, were an instant hit among crypto fans starved of ways to have fun with crypto beyond trading it. Developers have long struggled to blend crypto functionality into games and services that people want to use because they're enticing, not just for the opportunity to turn a quick profit. But CTG players waxed lyrical about the game, which became the talk of Crypto Twitter during the first two seasons. 'Financial incentives are the greatest [user] acquisition tool in the world, but very bad for retention,' says David Phelps, founder of crypto startup JokeRace, who played in the second season of CTG. 'Tapping into social incentives is almost radical in crypto.' CTG is partly a game of skill; each day, tribes of players compete in a challenge—typically some sort of crypto puzzle, scavenger hunt, or arcade game—with the goal of earning temporary immunity from elimination. But it's predominantly a social game; one of politicking, alliance-building, maneuvering, and backstabbing. Each night, the tribes without immunity are tasked with voting out a varying number of their own players until only a handful remain. On the final day, a single winner is crowned by the eliminated players. 'You can't just backstab your way to the top,' Dylan Abruscato, the creator of CTG, told WIRED in an interview last spring. 'You need to play a ruthless but respected game.' Nearly a decade ago, Abruscato was an executive at HQ Trivia, a live quizzing game that became a viral hit before the operation ran out of cash. CTG is a spiritual successor of sorts, pitched at a narrower audience: chronically online crypto fanatics. After the debut season, each subsequent edition has had its own twist. In season two, all players were anonymous, and entry NFTs could be traded on the secondary market. This time, players had to register with an X account but were given a small chance to earn their way back into the game by way of resurrection. 'Every season is its own unique social experiment,' says Abruscato. 'I always want to keep players on their toes.' When I spoke to Abruscato again ahead of the third season, he was careful not to say anything that might give me an undue advantage. But we did discuss the possibility that high-profile players might be targeted for elimination. I'm far from a household name, but given the animus toward journalists in some quarters of cryptoland, I decided to go undercover. In my two-and-a-half years covering crypto, I have reported on all manner of frauds, bankruptcies, scams, and other morally dubious shenanigans. The common thread has been the extraction of wealth, which generally flows into the pockets of an already-wealthy or nefarious few at the expense of those who can least afford to lose. But CTG struck me as different. It was an opportunity to embed among technologists convinced of the latent potential of crypto technologies, in an experiment that is far less about profit—despite players competing to win a pot of money—than about expressing crypto's hacker culture and colorful lore. I asked a random name generator to assign me an alter ego: Leo Westley. It had a ring to it. Then I created new Google and X accounts and picked up a burner SIM, knowing that players would be communicating over Telegram and working in shared spreadsheets, which they use to coordinate voting. As Leo's profile image, I chose a picture of a floppy-eared spaniel that I sometimes look after. What could be more disarming? Players were assigned to different 'tribes' in the game to compete together and eliminate each other. Courtesy of Crypto: The Game, Uniswap Labs Before the game began, I listened to back to my conversations with CTG players from previous seasons, hoping to glean some essential wisdom that might help me to survive at least a couple of nights. Their advice was generally to fly low; not to do anything that would mark me out as either particularly competent or overly hapless. Leaders are quickly eliminated, as are deadweights. 'To some degree, almost being invisible was a super strength,' said Phelps. 'You don't want to be absent, because you'll get killed for not contributing. And you don't really want to stick your head up. Then people think you might be a risk to them.' Katy Jeremko, founder of developer cooperative Indie and another former player, had given me an equally precious piece of advice: 'Your vote is your most valuable currency.' With those warnings ringing in my ears, I entered the game on March 10 and was placed into the Gold Tribe along with around 70 other players. Immediately, people fell into archetypal character roles: there were leaders, organizers, data nerds, hype artists, and wallflowers. One person set up a Telegram group and began to ferret away in a spreadsheet. Another 'vibe-coded' a program that scraped blockchain data to track who remained in the game. Others shitposted in the chat. Paralyzed by fear of saying the wrong thing, I said very little more than hello. Privately, I created my own spreadsheet to make notes on my tribe members, recording their every minor infraction. 'Kinda annoying,' I scribbled next to one guy's handle. 'Muppet, get rid,' I wrote next to another. I had met them barely hours earlier. Initially, I floated through the nightly eliminations by being performatively present. I contributed to the challenges, updated the spreadsheets when required, and posted in the chat at intervals. The tribe adopted 'Gold morning' as a greeting, so I started saying it too. Things came to a head on day three. To earn immunity, we had been tasked with achieving the highest possible pinball score. After somebody found a way to cheese the game by rhythmically tapping the up key, it became a challenge of endurance rather than skill. I spent hours improving my score—far longer than my manager would care to know. One player said they felt like they were in an episode of Severance : 'I heard if we hit 10M points we get a waffle party,' they quipped. Afterward, my tribe having been comfortably outscored, the talk turned to the impending vote. The simplest option was to eliminate the lowest scorers. But one player, Luke Cannon, proposed the tribe abstain from voting entirely. It was a high-risk, high-reward strategy: In theory, everyone could be spared, but a single vote in the final minutes of the voting period, which lasted an hour, would be enough to eliminate an undeserving player. The vote began at 8 pm ET, midnight for me. The abstinence strategy lasted all of four minutes before someone received a vote. As panic spread, more votes piled in. Players began to point fingers at one another: It was you, wasn't it? 'I am declaring martial law in Gold,' wrote Cannon, who had himself received a stray vote. 'If you do not dm to contribute your vote you are at risk,' he added, appending a passive-aggressive smiley. My heart began to throb a few beats faster. I was reluctant to side with the renegade, but if I was going to be eliminated, I didn't want to go down twiddling my thumbs. I messaged Cannon privately and voted at his instruction. Though Cannon's intervention saved a few worthy players, replacing them on the elimination board with nonparticipants and low pinball scorers, he was unable to save himself. The display of pacifism and tribe unity had descended into a bloodbath. But I had survived. The following day, the gamemasters had prepared a surprise: Everyone would be changing tribes. I was swapped into Silver, bidding farewell to almost all of my old team members. Strangely, though really they were only strangers, I missed them. I was greeted by another set of self-elected leaders who were busy deploying a labyrinth of spreadsheets and Telegram chats, which this time could only be accessed with a Silver Tribe NFT. The idea was to prevent any infiltrators from sowing disorder—sabotage is not uncommon in CTG—but the more convoluted system bewildered some players. It seemed a fitting allegory for the very crypto tendency to overcomplicate, where a manual process would do. 'The most crypto experience ever,' remarked one player. 'It's 2025 we gotta do better 😂.' Meanwhile, I splintered into a separate chat made up of seven former Gold members that now belonged to Silver, who would become the closest thing I had in the game to a cabal. The days began to blend together as I settled into my strange new routine: I woke up late, participated in the challenge, performed any necessary spreadsheet admin, kept abreast of conversation, and shuffled back to my desk for the vote at midnight. My unlucky partner, much-neglected for the duration of the game, was rudely awoken each night as I clambered over her to reach my side of the bed. As I tried to fall asleep, my mind replayed the conversations of the day, as if projected onto the inside of my eyelids. Players who failed to spend every waking moment with the tribe were marked out for potential elimination, professional duties and family life be damned. Though my partner gladly had a go at the arcade game challenges, she was otherwise bemused by my new preoccupation with my tribe. One day, I tried to solicit her advice on a point of in-game strategy. 'I don't know how crypto nerds think!' she responded with a laugh, shooing me back to my desk. Players would vote for others to be kicked out of the game. Those that received the most votes were eliminated. Courtesy of Crypto: The Game, Uniswap Labs Unlike in my previous tribe, the Silver leaders attempted to exercise total control over each elimination, assigning specific votes to specific players and even demanding proof of compliance. To help determine who should be voted out, one of them coded up a Telegram bot that required players to 'check in' and recorded how frequently they contributed to the chat. Along with each player's scores in the challenges, this data was fed into the spreadsheet. In our splinter group, the former Gold members and I bristled at the idea of voting on rails but caved to the demands. 'Tonight, servitude feels like the move? Lol,' wrote Nick Prince, one of my fellow conspirators. He was right. On day eight, the game changed again. There would be no challenge, players were told, but all tribes would merge into one. 'This is now an individual game,' the CTG website declared. With 315 players still in play and only two days left until the finale, there was an undercurrent of tension. On Telegram, players started to talk about the 'Red Wedding,' a famously bloody scene in Game of Thrones . Before the vote, an anonymous person defaced the spreadsheet shared among all remaining players. 'Dear Data Grunts,' the note read. 'The data you're inputting is just busy work. Hope you made friends this season. They're all that's going to save you now.' An anonymous message written in the communal spreadsheet. The strategy among former Silver members was to arrange truces with a handful of other groups, thereby deflecting votes elsewhere. The trouble was knowing whether anyone could be trusted to keep their word. After allowing myself on previous nights to be cowed into voting as somebody else instructed, I resolved to vote as I pleased, come what may. That night, 100 players were up for elimination, but potentially more if a large number of people received the same amount of votes. The statistical probability meant that a single vote would likely be fatal. For the first few minutes, I watched the votes peel in. Then my gut flipped; my icon had flashed up onscreen, framed in red. I understood that my game had probably come to an end—and I would probably never find out who was responsible. I spent my own bullet on a player who, at least in my estimation, had behaved condescendingly in the chat. They and 157 other players went out with me. The elimination message displayed to players who were kicked off the game. Courtesy of Crypto: The Game, Uniswap Labs On the final day, 68 players remained. Instead of voting against one another, they now had to pitch for the votes of everyone who had previously been eliminated. The individual with the greatest amount of support would win the $140,000 prize. A few of the finalists appeared on Too Online, the companion podcast that aired nightly during the CTG season, to plead their case. Many said they would split the pot, either with people who voted for them, their tribe members, charitable organizations, or along some other lines. Others said they would spend the winnings on their children or use it to pay down medical debt. 'I beg for your votes. This is life-changing money for my family,' said one player. At the end of the first season of CTG, an anonymous player from Japan was crowned victor after wooing their peers with abstract poetry. The prize fund in the second season was claimed by a player who promised to commit the winnings to the legal defense of two developers behind crypto service Tornado Cash, who had been charged with money laundering. This time, it came down to a single vote. Two front-runners leapfrogged one another on the leaderboard throughout the day. The prize was ultimately claimed by Ted, a player from California who had come in second place the previous season, who pitched voters on her redemption arc: Ted had been eliminated on the eighth night, like myself, but was given an NFT to participate in the final by a close ally, who believed that she had a better chance to win. 'I still can't believe it's real. I feel manic,' said Ted, appearing on Too Online after the vote. 'I'm still speechless.' After I left the game, the immediate feeling was a sinking disappointment; though I never imagined I might win, I had invested a piece of myself in the competition. But that sensation was quickly swallowed by relief. At the end of nine consecutive days spent consorting with strangers on the internet, I was emotionally and physically exhausted. The game demands constant outward performance and careful introspection from players, and even a brief lapse could result in their eviction. My exit felt like emerging from a fugue. I was reminded of something another player had said after they were eliminated from the game. 'Off to touch some grass,' they told the tribe, signing off on Telegram. I decided I would do the same.
