Women journalists from Iran, Myanmar, the Philippines, and the U.S. recognized for reporting amid increasing risk
WASHINGTON, May 14, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The International Women’s Media Foundation (IWMF) today announced the recipients of the 37th annual Courage in Journalism Awards, honoring women who report under dangerous conditions and extreme pressure to expose the truth. The 2026 winners include Iranian sisters and print reporters Elaheh and Elnaz Mohammadi; Georgia Fort, a broadcast journalist from the United States; and Nay Min Ni (using a pseudonym), a digital journalist reporting from Myanmar.
Filipino journalist Frenchie Mae Cumpio – who covers state violence in the Philippines and is now imprisoned within that same system – received the IWMF’s 2026 Wallis Annenberg Justice for Women Journalists Award, which is given each year to a journalist who is unjustly detained, jailed, or imprisoned.
This year’s Courage Award winners, chosen from nominations across 53 nationalities, demonstrate the world’s shrinking capacity for press freedom, amplified by a mix of legal pressure, gendered intimidation, and digital targeting. Across multiple continents, each winner is operating in a different political system, yet each faces the same core dynamic: The frontlines have moved, and journalism itself is now the target.
“The criminalization of truth-telling is what makes courage the future of journalism,” said IWMF President Elisa Lees Muñoz. “For the women who dare to report, journalism itself is being reframed as a punishable act. We no longer live in a world of reactive suppression but preemptive deterrence, where reporting itself is a liability. The IWMF is proud to honor Elaheh, Elnaz, Frenchie, Georgia, and Nay – women who are living with the very risk they document – with Courage Awards this year.”
In Myanmar, Ni has been forced into hiding following her reporting on human rights abuses and civil war in a country that criminalizes journalism and operates under military rule. Fort, who reports on social justice and community-centered news, was arrested this winter and faces federal felony charges for covering an anti-ICE protest inside a U.S. church. For years, the Mohammadi sisters have documented systemic state control and violence in Iran – one of the world’s most restrictive media environments – and have been arrested, imprisoned, and censored for their journalism. Arrested in 2020 on widely disputed charges, Cumpio remains behind bars as a political prisoner, targeted for her reporting on human rights, rural inequality, and the impacts of militarization.
“From Minneapolis to Mandalay, Tehran to Tacloban, this year’s Courage Award winners reveal a shared truth: Press freedom is eroding not at the margins, but at the center, and women are on the frontlines,” said the selection committee of the 2026 IWMF Courage in Journalism Awards. “We commend this year’s recipients for bearing witness and continuing to report, despite coordinated efforts intended to silence their voices, especially in environments where the truth is under threat of erasure.”
The Courage in Journalism Awards are made possible by Bank of America, the awards’ National Presenting Sponsor for a landmark 20 consecutive years. The IWMF would like to thank Bank of America for its enduring commitment to journalism and the pursuit of press freedom.
The 2026 IWMF Courage in Journalism Awards will be presented during a luncheon in New York City on November 10 and an evening reception in Los Angeles on November 12. For more information about attending or sponsoring the Courage Awards, please contact us at: courage@iwmf.org.
About the 2026 Courage in Journalism Award Winners
Georgia Fort (United States) – Independent Journalist
Instagram: @bygeorgiafort / X: @ByGeorgiaFort
Georgia Fort is a Minneapolis-based Midwest Emmy Award-winning independent journalist, media entrepreneur, and founder of BLCK Press and the Center for Broadcast Journalism. With nearly two decades of experience across radio, television, and digital media, Fort reported for outlets including NBC’s Today Show and PBS Frontline before launching her own independent newsroom to center underreported stories and communities.
Fort’s work focuses on social justice, policing, and community impact. She gained national attention for her frontline coverage of the murder of George Floyd and the sentencing of Derek Chauvin, where she was one of only two journalists in the courtroom. Fort’s independently produced television program “Here’s the Truth” has earned 12 Regional Emmy nominations and three wins, and she is a 2025 Bush Fellow recognized for advancing equity in media.
On January 30, 2026, Fort was arrested and charged with federal felony offenses, including conspiracy and interference with constitutional rights, for documenting a protest as a journalist inside a church in St. Paul, Minnesota. She has pleaded not guilty and is awaiting trial in an ongoing, unresolved legal case.
Fort remarked: “Receiving the Courage Award from the International Women’s Media Foundation at a time when press freedom is under attack and journalism is being criminalized is a true honor and carries real weight. The strength of women around the world standing for truth despite these attacks is a reminder that it is within each other that we can find the courage to continue reporting through one of the most dangerous eras for our industry.”
Read more of Fort’s story here.
Elaheh and Elnaz Mohammadi (Iran) – Ham-Mihan
Sisters Elaheh and Elnaz Mohammadi are Iranian journalists whose reporting on human rights, women’s rights, and social issues has made them among the most prominent news media voices in Iran. Both have spent more than a decade reporting within the state’s tightly controlled press system, contributing to reformist outlets including Ham-Mihan and, previously, Etemaad and Khabar Online.
Elaheh gained international recognition in 2022 for her reporting on the death and funeral of Mahsa Amini, an event that catalyzed the “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement. Her coverage led to her arrest, imprisonment, and sentencing on national security charges; she spent approximately 18 months in detention. She has since been recognized globally, including being named to TIME’s 100 Most Influential People and receiving major honors such as the UNESCO Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize, the Louis M. Lyons Award from Harvard, and the Golden Pen of Freedom Award.
Elnaz, a veteran social affairs journalist and editor at Ham-Mihan, has long focused on women’s rights, children’s rights, and social harms across Iran. Following her sister’s arrest, she continued their reporting under increasing pressure, including surveillance, detention, interrogation, and a suspended prison sentence tied to her coverage of the same protests. Elnaz received the True Story Award journalism prize in 2021 and 2024, has received two honors from the Association of Iranian Journalists, and was shortlisted for the Reporters Without Borders Courage Prize in 2026.
Amid ongoing, severe repression against independent media in Iran, Ham-Mihan was officially suspended on January 18, 2026, by Iran’s Press Supervisory Board.
Read more of the Mohammadi sisters’ story here and here.
Nay Min Ni (Myanmar) – Myanmar Now
Nay Min Ni, working under a pseudonym, is a reporter for the independent news outlet Myanmar Now, where she covers human rights abuses, land confiscation, and the impact of Myanmar’s ongoing civil conflict. She began her career as a poet before turning to journalism in 2017, quickly establishing herself as a reporter focused on accountability and justice within Myanmar’s military-dominated system.
Following the 2021 military coup, Myanmar Now was outlawed, and Ni continued reporting from within the country despite the risks. Her work now focuses on documenting the human cost of war, including displacement, military violence, and the destruction of civilian livelihoods. Rather than going into exile, she has remained in Myanmar, operating underground and moving between safe houses to avoid arrest.
Her reporting provides rare, firsthand insight into one of the world’s most dangerous environments for journalists, where media workers face imprisonment, torture, and forced disappearance. Known for her investigative and field reporting, Ni’s work bridges local realities with global awareness, ensuring that the experiences of Myanmar’s civilians are documented and not erased.
Upon receiving the Courage Award, Ni commented: “I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the organization for awarding me this prestigious journalism prize. This recognition gives me renewed strength to continue standing firmly on the side of truth. Going forward, I will remain committed to delivering information that benefits the people of Myanmar with a full sense of responsibility.”
Read more of Ni’s story here.
About the 2026 Wallis Annenberg Justice for Women Journalists Award Winner
Frenchie Mae Cumpio (The Philippines) – Eastern Vista
Frenchie Mae Cumpio is a Filipino journalist and executive director of the independent news outlet Eastern Vista. She is known for her reporting on social inequality in the Eastern Visayas region, including land rights abuses, the killings of farmers, disaster response, and the impacts of militarized conflict under government policies.
As a student journalist at the University of the Philippines Tacloban, she rose quickly within alternative media networks, becoming a leading voice in regional and grassroots reporting. Prior to her time with Eastern Vista, Cumpio was the former editor-in-chief of UP Vista and was a radio broadcaster at Aksyon Radyo Tacloban DYVL.
In 2020, Cumpio’s assets were seized from her home, and she was arrested following a police raid and charged with terrorism-related offenses, widely regarded as fabricated. Cumpio’s work – and her continued imprisonment – highlights the use of legal mechanisms, including anti-terror laws and “red-tagging,” to silence independent media in the Philippines.
In 2026, Cumpio was nominated for the UNESCO Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize and in 2025 she was shortlisted for the Reporters Without Borders Courage Prize.
Cumpio commented from prison: “I am deeply honored to receive this award, but I’d like to give a greater salute to everyone who continues to believe in truth and justice. To our lawyers, our families, the National Union of People’s Lawyers (NUPL), and above all, the members of the media who fearlessly covered and exposed our stories, despite the risks.”
Cumpio continued: “Growing up in one of the poorest regions in my country, taking part in unveiling the truth, and exposing abuse has rather been a necessity than a choice. Journalism in a country ruled by only one percent of its population means providing the masses and marginalized sectors with a voice. This [award] is a recognition of the truth and the strength of the people, united.“
Read more of Cumpio’s story here.
About the International Women’s Media Foundation
The IWMF is the only global organization built to serve the holistic needs of women and nonbinary journalists. We are a bold and inclusive organization that supports journalists where they are with awards, reporting opportunities, fellowships, grants, safety training and emergency aid. As one of the largest supporters of women-produced journalism, our transformative work strengthens equal opportunity and press freedom worldwide. Follow the IWMF on X at @IWMF, on Facebook at @IWMFPage, on Instagram at @TheIWMF and on TikTok @theiwmf.
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SOURCE The International Women’s Media Foundation
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