Two recent graduates of UC Berkeley Journalism who took specialized training in public records at the school’s Investigative Reporting Program have been awarded Free Speech and Open Government Awards from the First Amendment Coalition.
The annual awards recognize outstanding contributions to the advancement of free expression or the people’s right to know about their government.
Callie Rhoades (’23)
Callie Rhoades (’23) co-authored The Oaklandside’s series of articles that explored the lead contamination crisis at Oakland Unified School District schools. Rhoades filed dozens of Public Records Act requests over an 11-month period to learn what led to the crisis, whether the problem was actually fixed, and if the 34,000 students at 43 at-risk schools were safe. The investigation found that students and teachers were drinking from contaminated water sources for months after contamination was discovered; remediation was incomplete after lead was first detected at a high school in 2017; and even quick fixes such as marking unsafe water fountains and bringing in filtered water stations failed to keep students safe.
Following Rhoades’ investigation, the district has committed to several transparency reforms, including notifying school communities of lab test reports within 72 hours; creating a public dashboard online that summarizes test results; and establishing an automatic system that notifies school leaders about new test results. The school board allocated $20.5 million for lead abatement efforts. As of October 2025, most Oakland schools’ water has met safety thresholds.
Lincoln Elementary School in Oakland’s Chinatown. During lead testing OUSD conducted in the spring of 2024, a Lincoln water source had the highest lead levels in the district: 930 parts per billion, nearly 200 times higher than the district’s standard. Credit: Florence Middleton (‘24) for The Oaklandside.
“This year’s winners truly embody the best of journalism and free expression. Their courage and tenacity uncovered critical stories that demanded to be told,” said FAC Executive Director David Snyder. “Last year saw relentless attacks on journalists and the media from our government and others, but these winners show good reason for optimism about the future of free expression and a free press.”
Brian Howey (‘22)
Brian Howey (’22) of Mississippi Today, in collaboration with The New York Times’ Local Investigations Fellowship and Reveal from the Center for Investigative Reporting, filed hundreds of public records requests to investigate brutality and torture of incarcerees in county custody, one sheriff’s alleged theft of county resources and use of inmate labor on his family farm, the misuse of tasers, and a suspicious jail death. In addition to a print series, the team also produced two radio hours with the support of Reveal.
The Taser investigation alone was a monumental amount of work: The team grappled with law enforcement agencies for a year to secure the release of Taser logs. Once cross-checked against police reports, their research revealed officers’ use of Tasers was dangerous and ineffective. The reporting resulted in changes to sheriff departments’ Taser-use policies, and two bills in the state legislature to restrict Taser use.
The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation is investigating the reported instance of torturing one incarceree; the Mississippi State Auditor launched an investigation into the sheriff who put jail incarcerees to work on his family farm; and the U.S. Department of Justice will continue its ongoing investigation of the sheriff’s department (one of two probes the DOJ has kept open during the Trump administration).
“We’re proud of these collaborations and Callie and Brian’s work to help improve the lives of the vulnerable,” said Michael D. Bolden, dean of Berkeley Journalism. “Using public records, they worked with colleagues to report on the danger of lead exposure in Oakland schools and to uncover the brutality of sheriff’s deputies in Mississippi. These types of investigations are the bedrock of great investigative journalism.”
About the Honorees
Callie Rhoades (’23) is a multimedia journalist based out of the Bay Area. She currently works as a reporter for the Marin Independent Journal, covering five municipalities in Marin County. Before joining the IJ, she worked as The Oaklandside’s Nature and the City reporter through the California Local News Fellowship Program and as a producer for the Oaklandside 510 podcast. During graduate school, she interned at Berkeley Journalism’s Investigative Reporting Program. Her work has appeared in publications such as Sierra Magazine, Bay Nature, National Wildlife Magazine, Earth Island Journal, and SKI Magazine.
Brian Howey (‘22) is an award-winning journalist whose work has sparked a Justice Department investigation of a Mississippi sheriff’s office, induced policy changes at dozens of law enforcement agencies, and prompted new police oversight laws in two states. He is currently developing a new police accountability project scheduled to launch in late 2026.
Past winners from UC Berkeley Journalism include alum Laurence du Sault (‘23), who through more than 50 public records requests, 15,000 pages of documents, and a California Public Records Act lawsuit filed by her newsroom Open Vallejo, revealed years-long, systemic delays by the Vallejo Police Department investigating deaths caused by its officers.
Following the publication of her investigation, the department released a proposal to modify how it investigates shootings, and the police chief resigned. Like our current winners, Laurence studied public records access at the Investigative Reporting Program.
