Sarasota Herald-Tribune’s Michael Braga Wins Pulitzer Prize

NEW YORK, N.Y. April 21, 2016 – The Sarasota Herald-Tribune investigations editor Michael Braga won the Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting for his role in a year-long collaboration with the detailing horrific conditions in Florida's mental health hospitals. The Herald-Tribune is published by GateHouse Media, a wholly owned subsidiary of New Media Investment Group Inc. (NYSE: NEWM).

Announced April 18, the award is considered the highest honor in American journalism, bestowing just 13 prizes annually, despite receiving more than 1,000 nominations.

“The Herald-Tribune has adapted proactively during an era of rapid change in media, but our commitment to investigative journalism remains ingrained in why we exist and matter to our community,” Herald-Tribune executive editor Bill Church said.

Braga was honored alongside former Herald-Tribune investigations editor , now a reporter at the Tampa Bay Times, and Times reporter Leonora LaPeter Anton. Cormier was still on the staff of the Herald-Tribune when the investigation began.

The winning, five-part series — “Insane. Invisible. In danger,” that was published in both newspapers in October and November — linked deep budget cuts within Florida's mental health system to a spike in systemic violence and abuse at its state-run hospitals. As a result of the investigation, state lawmakers in March increased funding for mental health hospitals by $4 million so they could hire up to 160 new “frontline” workers — people who interact directly with patients.

"All of us at GateHouse are thrilled to celebrate Michael Braga for this incredible investigative series," said GateHouse Eastern Group President Bernie Szachara. "Michael and his colleagues prove the power of strong local journalism and its ability to impact the community, region and state."

This is the second Pulitzer Prize for the Herald-Tribune and the second time Braga has been a finalist.

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Contact: Sara Yakin, Investor Relations [email protected] (212) 479-3160

Source: New Media Investment Group Inc.