August 30, 2026 — The Center for Integrity in News Reporting will expand its state journalism awards to California with a gift from Larry W. Sonsini , the prominent attorney who counseled many of the technology industry's defining companies. California becomes the 23rd state covered by the center's awards program and the most populous, home to more than 39 million people. The center will partner with the California News Publishers Association , which has served the state's newspapers since 1888, to present a $5,000 annual award honoring exemplary impartial, objective and fair news reporting. "Larry's generosity lets us recognize California journalists whose reporting meets the highest standards of impartiality, objectivity and fairness," said CFINR Executive Director Rufus Friday. The gift continues a period of rapid growth for the program. On Aug. 7, the center announced new awards in Iowa and Ohio , funded by the Adler Schermer Foundation and by John and Jane McCoy. With California added, the 23 participating states are home to roughly 197 million Americans, well over half the U.S. population. Sonsini is senior and founding partner of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati , the Palo Alto law firm he led as CEO and chairman for more than 35 years. He served as counsel to companies including Apple, Google, Netscape and YouTube, and as an adviser to industry figures including Steve Jobs. He also sat on the New York Stock Exchange's board of directors from 2001 to 2003 and later chaired the exchange's Commission on Corporate Governance. Born in Rome, New York, Sonsini moved with his family to California in 1949. He earned his bachelor's degree in 1963 and his law degree in 1966, both from the University of California, Berkeley, and has chaired the board of trustees at Santa Clara University since 2021. The state awards launched in 2025 with a grant from the SNPA Foundation covering 14 southern and southeastern states . A grant from the Stanton Foundation later extended the program across New England . The expansion comes as American trust in news media sits near record lows. Gallup polling shows the share of Americans who trust the media has fallen to 28% , down from about 70% in the 1970s. Founded in 2024 by Walter E. Hussman Jr., the Center for Integrity in News Reporting is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to improving public trust in journalism. Learn more at cfinr.org .
Center’s state press association awards now cover 22 states
New York Times White House correspondent Tyler Pager accepts the 2026 Center for Integrity in News Reporting Award from CNN's Wolf Blitzer at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner in Washington, D.C., on Friday, July 24. (WHCA photo by Mike Theiler)
