The Syracuse Press Club is pleased to announce the winners of its 2023 A. Brohmann Roth Newcomer Award, based on stellar work by a young reporter or reporters in 2022.
Congratulations to Rylee Kirk and Anne Hayes, both crime and public safety reporters at Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard. They were selected from a group of talented new journalists in Central New York.
Rylee Kirk, Newcomer of the Year
Rylee Kirk joined Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard in October 2021 after graduating with a master’s degree in investigative journalism from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism in Arizona.
She is originally from Skaneateles, New York, and moved to just outside Savannah, Georgia at a young age. Since returning to the 315, she has worked as a crime and public safety reporter. She has investigated the systematic failure of the child protective system in Oswego County, even traveling to Virginia to speak with a survivor.
Frequently she profiles crime victims, including tracking down the family of a Yemeni refugee killed in 2021 to write about him.
At the Cronkite school, Kirk worked on a capstone investigation entitled “Little Victims Everywhere,” which revealed the federal government’s inaction on child sex abuse cases in Indian Country. The project won the Shaufler Prize.
After high school she graduated from Mercer University with a journalism degree. While at Mercer University she reported on the campus community, local community, and was part of a reporting trip to Peru.
In the future, she hopes to continue covering important topics and help people share their stories.
Anne Hayes, Newcomer of the Year
Anne Hayes joined Syracuse.com | The Post-Standard in June 2021 as a crime and public safety reporter. She has covered the high profile Robert Neulander trial and the 2023 Onondaga County Sheriff election and the closure of the Jamesville Correctional Facility.
She also breaks news that is syndicated by national outlets, including the death of Liam Suave and the arrest warrant issued for Mets player Khalil Lee.
Hayes is originally from Avon, Connecticut. Syracuse became a second home during her time as an undergraduate at Syracuse University.
She graduated in the last class of Online and Newspaper Journalism majors from the S.I. Newhouse School of Communications. She also received a degree in Political Science from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. While at school, Hayes covered the ongoing #NotAgainSU protests and won The College Media Associations Pinnacle award for Best Breaking News Coverage 2020.
Hayes hopes to continue covering law and politics in Syracuse and the surrounding region. She is grateful to be recognized as one of many exceptional young journalists that have joined Central New York news outlets in recent years.
Congratulations to Rylee and Annie! We look forward to presenting you both with the Newcomer Award at the SPC Awards Banquet on Saturday, May 6, 2023.
SPC’s A. Brohmann Roth Newcomer Award is presented to promising young individuals who are just beginning their careers in journalism. The award recognizes raw talent and high potential, and many of our Newcomers have gone on to have long, successful careers in journalism and media. Candidates must be in their first three years of employment.
• Our 2022 Newcomers of the Year were Ben T. Grieco of Oswego County Media Group and Conor Wight of CNY Central.
• Our 2021 Newcomer of the Year was Ricky Sayer of CitrusTV.
• Our 2020 Newcomer of the Year was Mike Curtis of Syracuse.com and The Post-Standard. See more past winners.