Former H-L photographer wins Pulitzer Prize for photo series of Utah family
A former Lexington Herald-Leader photographer and University of Kentucky graduate has won the Pulitzer Prize for feature photography.
Jahi Chikwendiu won for a series of photos of a Utah family whose young father was battling terminal cancer at the same time his wife was expecting the family’s first baby, according to the Pulitzer Prize board.
The Pulitzer Prizes were announced May 4.
Chikwendiu was working for the Washington Post at the time the 2025 series ran. Chikwendiu had worked for the national media outlet since 2001, according to information on his website. The Post also won a Pulitzer for its series on the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, efforts to slash the federal government.
Prior to working at the Washington Post, he worked for the Herald-Leader for several years and was named the Photographer of the Year by the Kentucky News Photographers Association in 1998, less than three months after starting to work full-time at the newspaper.
Chikwendiu had not planned on becoming a photojournalist, according to his website. He attended the University of Kentucky and received a degree in math and a master’s degree in education with the intention of teaching. He taught for one year before he started at the Lexington newspaper.
