The NCTE George Orwell Award for Distinguished Contribution to Honesty and Clarity in Public Language (the Orwell Award for short), is an award given since 1975 by the Public Language Award Committee of the National Council of Teachers of English. It is awarded annually to "writers who have made outstanding contributions to the critical analysis of

public discourse The public sphere (german: Öffentlichkeit) is an area in social life where individuals can come together to freely discuss and identify societal problems, and through that discussion influence political action. A "Public" is "of or concerning th ...

Noam Chomsky Avram Noam Chomsky (born December 7, 1928) is an American public intellectual: a linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, historian, social critic, and political activist. Sometimes called "the father of modern linguistics", Chomsky is ...

Donald Barlett Donald L. Barlett (born July 17, 1936) is an American investigative journalist and author who often collaborates with James B. Steele. According to '' The Washington Journalism Review'', they were a better investigative reporting team than even B ...

, and

James B. Steele James B. Steele (born January 3, 1943) is an American investigative journalist and author. With longtime collaborator Donald L. Barlett he has won two Pulitzer Prizes, two National Magazine Awards and five George Polk Awards during their thirty ...

are the only recipients to have won twice. Its negative counterpart, awarded by the same body, is the

Doublespeak Award The Doublespeak Award is an "ironic tribute to public speakers who have perpetuated language that is grossly deceptive, evasive, euphemistic, confusing, or self-centered", i.e. those who have engaged in doublespeak. It has been issued by the Nation ...

, "an ironic tribute to public speakers who have perpetuated language that is grossly deceptive, evasive, euphemistic, confusing, or self-centered."

Winners

1970s

*1975: David Wise for ''The Politics of Lying'' *1976: Hugh Rank for the "Intensify/Downplay" schema for analyzing communication, persuasion, and propaganda *1977:

Walter Pincus Walter Haskell Pincus (born December 24, 1932) is an American national security journalist. He reported for ''The Washington Post'' until the end of 2015. He has won several prizes including a Polk Award in 1977, a television Emmy in 1981, and ...

, ''Washington Post'' "A patient, methodical journalist who knew his job and who knew the jargon of Washington. Mr. Pincus was the man responsible for bringing to public attention, and thus to a debate in the Senate, the appropriations funding for the neutron bomb."—Hugh Rank, chair, NCTE Committee on Public Doublespeak *1978:

Sissela Bok Sissela Bok (born Myrdal; 2 December 1934) is a Swedish-born American philosopher and ethicist, the daughter of two Nobel Prize winners: Gunnar Myrdal who won the Economics prize with Friedrich Hayek in 1974, and Alva Myrdal who won the Nobel Pea ...

for '' Lying: Moral Choice in Public and Private Life'' *1979:

Erving Goffman Erving Goffman (11 June 1922 – 19 November 1982) was a Canadian-born sociology, sociologist, Social psychology (sociology), social psychologist, and writer, considered by some "the most influential American sociologist of the twentieth ...

for ''Gender Advertisements''

1980s

*1980:

Sheila Harty Sheila (alternatively spelled Shelagh and Sheelagh) is a common feminine given name, derived from the Irish name ''Síle'', which is believed to be a Gaelic form of the Latin name Caelia, the feminine form of the Roman clan name Caelius, meani ...

for ''Hucksters in the Classroom: A Review of Industry Propaganda in Schools'' *1981: Dwight Bolinger for ''Language--The Loaded Weapon'' *1982: Stephen Hilgartner, Richard C. Bell, and Rory O'Connor for '' Nukespeak: Nuclear Language, Visions and Mindset'' *1983: Haig Bosmajian for ''The Language of Oppression'' *1984: Ted Koppel, moderator,

Nightline ''Nightline'' (or ''ABC News Nightline'') is ABC News' late-night television news program broadcast on ABC in the United States with a franchised formula to other networks and stations elsewhere in the world. Created by Roone Arledge, the progra ...

, ABC-TV. ". . . a model of intelligence, informed interest, social awareness, verbal fluency, fair and rigorous questioning of controversial figures. . . . ho has soughthonesty and openness, clarity and coherence, to raise the level of public discourse."—William Lutz, chair, NCTE Committee on Public Doublespeak *1985:

Torben Vestergaard Torben is a Danish variant of the given name Torbjörn. People named Torben include: *Torben Betts (born 1968), English playwright and screenwriter *Torben Boye (born 1966), Danish former footballer *Torben Frank (born 1968), Danish former footbal ...

and

Kim Schroder Kim or KIM may refer to: Names * Kim (given name) * Kim (surname) ** Kim (Korean surname) *** Kim family (disambiguation), several dynasties **** Kim family (North Korea), the rulers of North Korea since Kim Il-sung in 1948 ** Kim, Vietnamese fo ...

for ''The Language of Advertising'' *1986:

Neil Postman Neil Postman (March 8, 1931 – October 5, 2003) was an American author, educator, media theorist and cultural critic, who eschewed digital technology, including personal computers, mobile devices, and cruise control in cars, and was critical of ...

for '' Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business'' *1987:

for ''On Power and Ideology: The Managua Lectures'' *1988:

and

, ''Philadelphia Inquirer'' for a series of articles on the Tax Reform Act of 1986, in which they pointed out language disguising tax loopholes in the legislation *1989: Edward S. Herman and

for '' Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media''

1990s

*1990:

Charlotte Baecher Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populous ...

, Consumers Union for ''Selling America's Kids: Commercial Pressures on Kids of the 90s'' *1991: David Aaron Kessler, Commissioner, Federal

Food and Drug Administration The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respon ...

. "Under the leadership of Commissioner Kessler," said William Lutz, chair of the NCTE Committee on Public Doublespeak, "the FDA has begun seizing products with misleading labels, developing new guidelines for clarity and accuracy in food labels, and exposing false, misleading, and deceptive health claims on food labels and in food advertising." *1992:

and James Steele, ''Philadelphia Inquirer'' for ''America: What Went Wrong?'' *1993:

Eric Alterman Eric Alterman (born January 14, 1960) is an American historian, journalist, author, media critic, blogger, and educator. He is a CUNY Distinguished Professor of English and Journalism at Brooklyn College and the author of eleven books. From 199 ...

: ''Sound and Fury: The Washington Punditocracy and the Collapse of American Politics'' *1994:

Garry Trudeau Garretson Beekman Trudeau (born July 21, 1948) is an American cartoonist, best known for creating the ''Doonesbury'' comic strip. Trudeau is also the creator and executive producer of the Amazon Studios political comedy series ''Alpha House''. ...

, creator of the cartoon strip "

Doonesbury ''Doonesbury'' is a comic strip by American cartoonist Garry Trudeau that chronicles the adventures and lives of an array of characters of various ages, professions, and backgrounds, from the President of the United States The president ...

" was cited for consistently attacking doublespeak in all aspects of American life and from all parts of the cultural and political spectrum. *1995: '' Lies of Our Times'' (LOOT) A Magazine to Correct the Record, was published between January 1990 and December 1994. It served not only as a general media critic, but as a watchdog of The New York Times, which the magazine referred to as "the most cited news medium in the U.S., our paper of record." *1996: William D. Lutz for ''The New Doublespeak: Why No One Knows What Anyone's Saying Anymore'' *1997:

Gertrude Himmelfarb Gertrude Himmelfarb (August 8, 1922 – December 30, 2019), also known as Bea Kristol, was an American historian. She was a leader of conservative interpretations of history and historiography. She wrote extensively on intellectual history, w ...

for "Professor Narcissus: In Today's Academy, Everything Is Personal," June 2, 1997, issue of ''

The Weekly Standard ''The Weekly Standard'' was an American neoconservative political magazine of news, analysis and commentary, published 48 times per year. Originally edited by founders Bill Kristol and Fred Barnes, the ''Standard'' had been described as a "red ...

'' *1998: Two winners **

Juliet Schor Juliet B. Schor (born 1955) is an economist and Sociology Professor at Boston College. She has studied trends in working time, consumerism, the relationship between work and family, women's issues and economic inequality, and concerns about climat ...

for '' The Overspent American: Upscaling, Downshifting, and the New Consumer'' ** Scott Adams for his role in "Mission Impertinent" (''

San Jose Mercury News West Magazine ''San Jose Mercury News West Magazine'', also referred to as ''West'' and ''West Magazine'', was a Sunday magazine published by ''San Jose Mercury News'' from 1982 to 1997. ''West Magazine'' received numerous awards and was recognized both for its ...

'', November 16, 1997). The farce highlighted the absurdity of managerial language and the overuse of the "mission statement". *1999: Norman Solomon for ''The Habits of Highly Deceptive Media: Decoding Spin and Lies in the Mainstream News'' (published by Common Courage Press, 1999)

2000s

*2000: Alfie Kohn for ''The Schools Our Children Deserve'' *2001:

Sheldon Rampton Sheldon Rampton (born August 4, 1957) is an American editor and author. He was editor of ''PR Watch'', and is the author of several books that criticize the public relations industry and what he sees as other forms of corporate and government prop ...

and

John Stauber John Stauber is an American progressive writer. Stauber has co-authored five books about government propaganda, private interests and the public relations industry. His work includes one book about how industry manipulates science ('' Trust Us, ...

for '' Trust Us, We're Experts!: How Industry Manipulates Science and Gambles with Your Future'' *2002:

Bill Press William H. Press (born April 8, 1940) is an American talk radio host, podcaster, liberal pundit and author. He was chairman of the California Democratic Party from 1993 to 1996, and is a senior political contributor on CNN. He hosts ''The Bill ...

for ''Spin This!'' *2003: Susan Ohanian, for the website ww.susanohanian.org*2004: Investigative journalist Seymour Hersh and Writer Arundhati Roy *2005:

Jon Stewart Jon Stewart (born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz; November 28, 1962) is an American comedian, political commentator, and television host. He hosted ''The Daily Show'', a satirical news program on Comedy Central, from 1999 to 2015 and now hosts ''Th ...

and the cast of ''

The Daily Show ''The Daily Show'' is an American late-night talk and satirical news television program. It airs each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central with release shortly after on Paramount+. ''The Daily Show'' draws its comedy and satire form from ...

'' *2006:

Steven H. Miles Steven H. Miles is an American doctor, author, and professor of medicine who has published on ethically topics relating to medicine and the use of torture. Miles is a practicing physician and Professor of Medicine at the University of Minnesota ...

, M.D, author of ''Oath Betrayed: Torture, Medical Complicity, and the War on Terror'' *2007:

Ted Gup Ted Gup (born September 14, 1950) is an author, journalist and professor known for his work on government secrecy, free speech and journalistic ethics. He is the author of three books, including ''The Book of Honor: Covert Lives and Classified Dea ...

, author of ''Nation of Secrets: The Threat to Democracy and the American Way of Life'' *2008:

Charlie Savage Charles or Charlie Savage may refer to: Real people * Charles Savage (banker) (fl. 1740s), governor of the Bank of England, 1745–1747 * Charles Savage (beachcomber) (died 1813), sailor and beachcomber known for his exploits on the islands of Fi ...

, author of ''Takeover: The Return of the Imperial Presidency and the Subversion of American Democracy'' *2009:

Amy Goodman Amy Goodman (born April 13, 1957) is an American broadcast journalist, syndicated columnist, investigative reporter, and author. Her investigative journalism career includes coverage of the East Timor independence movement, Morocco's occupation ...

, co-founder, executive producer, and host of '' Democracy Now!''

2010s

*2010: Michael Pollan, author of ''Food Rules'' and co-narrator of ''

Food, Inc. ''Food, Inc.'' is a 2008 American documentary film directed by Robert Kenner

'' *2011: F.S. Michaels, author of ''Monoculture: How One Story Is Changing Everything'' *2012:

Peter Zuckerman Peter Zuckerman (born December 27, 1979) is an American journalist and author who has focused his career in court reporting, investigative journalism, and adventure stories. He is also a leader of several prominent progressive political campaigns ...

and Amanda Padoan, authors of ''Buried in the Sky'' *2013: Paul L. Thomas whose publications include "Ignoring Poverty in the U.S.: The corporate takeover of public education" (2012) and "Challenging Genres: Comic books and graphic novels" (2010). Dr. Thomas has also edited a recently published volume titled "Becoming and Being a Teacher: Confronting Traditional Norms to Create New Democratic Realities" (2013). *2014 '' The Onion'' for its satire and "treatment of dramatically sensitive issues that plague our culture", in particular U.S. gun culture. *2015: Anthony Cody for '' The Educator and the Oligarch'' *2016: David Greenberg for ''Republic of Spin: An Inside History of the American Presidency'' *2017:

Richard Sobel Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Old Frankish and is a compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'stron ...

for ''Citizenship as Foundation of Rights: Meaning for America'' *2018: Katie Watson for ''Scarlet A'' *2019:

Michael P. Lynch Michael Patrick Lynch is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Connecticut. He is also the director of the University of Connecticut Humanities Institute. As director of the Humanities Institute, he has headed a Templeton-funded project ...

for ''Know-It-All-Society: Truth and Arrogance in Political Culture''

2020s

*2020: Dr.

April Baker-Bell April Baker-Bell is an American academic and the author of ''Linguistic Justice: Black Language, Literacy, Identity, and Pedagogy''. She is the 2020 recipient of the Orwell Award from the National Council of Teachers of English. She is a native of ...

, author of ''Linguistic Justice: Black Language, Literacy, Identity, and Pedagogy'' *2021: Kristin Kobes Du Mez for '' Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation''

References

External links

List of past winners (NCTE website)
{{Crimethink George Orwell American non-fiction literary awards Awards established in 1975 1975 establishments in the United States