‘Suave’ at the 2022 Pulitzer Prize Awards Ceremony

“As a journalist, you have to find your voice, trust your gut, and believe in your instincts,” said Maria Hinojosa.

In May we celebrated winning the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for Audio Reporting for our podcast series “Suave.” On October 20, we finally got the chance to gather at Columbia University’s dinner ceremony to celebrate our award with the rest of the winners!

^{Portrait of the 2022 Pulitzer Prize winners (Photo credit: Futuro Media)}

Reflecting on the Pulitzer ceremony, Maria Hinojosa says, “As a journalist, you have to find your voice, trust your gut, and believe in your instincts. And as a human being, keep putting one foot in front of the other and chipping away daily towards your dreams—no matter how impossible they may seem. Because incredible things can happen, incredible things will happen, when you do. Just look at Suave.”

^{The “Suave” team. Left to right: David Luis ‘Suave’ Gonzalez, host and producer Maggie Freleng, reporter and producer Julieta Martinelli, executive producer Maria Hinojosa, and executive editor Marlon Bishop. (Photo credit: Futuro Media)}

“Suave” is a seven-part podcast series about the criminal justice system that sentences juveniles to life in prison —particularly young men of color— and what happens when, decades later, they’re suddenly granted one more chance at freedom. The story follows David Luis ‘Suave’ Gonzalez from boy to man, exploring incarceration, redemption, and the often unusual relationship between a journalist and a source.

The “Suave” production team includes executive producer Maria Hinojosa, host and producer Maggie Freleng, reporter and producer Julieta Martinelli, story editor Audrey Quinn, engineer and sound designer Stephanie Lebow, and executive editor Marlon Bishop. The podcast is distributed by PRX and was released in February 2021.