Months of prep, source work propel AP to dominance on student loan forgiveness

By Seung Min Kim, Zeke Miller, Chris Megerian, Michael Balsamo, Collin Binkley, Bianca Vázquez Toness, Adriana Morga, Cora Lewis and Alex Connor

How President Joe Biden would deliver on his campaign promise to forgive student loan debt was one of the most closely watched decisions coming out of Washington this summer.

As anticipation built, White House reporters Seung Min Kim and Zeke Miller, along with lead Justice Department reporter Mike Balsamo, worked sources inside and outside the administration. Sixteen hours before the announcement — and a full news cycle before AP’s closest competitor — their tireless work meant AP alone had the details confirmed: Biden would cancel $10,000 in debt for those earning under $125,000, and extend a pause on repayments through the end of the year.

Amid the race to own the search traffic the night before the announcement, AP’s scoop earned an anchor spot on the Google News carousel, resulting in 460,000 views on AP News

While the Washington team was pursuing sources,AP prepared deep coverage beyond the numbers: Every AP story, from the mainbar to a search-optimized breakout on Pell Grants, would be centered on real people.

Education reporters Claire Savage,Arleigh Rodgers,Sharon Lurye,Heather Hollingsworth,Annie Ma and Bianca Vázquez Toness lined up more than 20 borrowers of all backgrounds and situations for on-camera interviews. In her first AP byline, Education reporter Vázquez Toness wrote powerfully of young people overjoyed to move out of their parents’ home — or heartbroken that they still must put off having kids because of crushing debt.

Financial Wellness reporters Cora Lewis and Adriana Morga used search trends on student loans to prepare a Q&A which they updated to address the intense interest and emerging confusion over Biden’s plan. Then, Morga and audience engagement editor Alex Connor reached the masses with a TikTok-style Instagram reel — AP’s first — that had 2,279 likes and a healthy 680 shares, while a Twitter Spaces session later that week has had more than 43,000 listeners.

AP 22236695690728 ss — Nick Marcil, 24, of Wayne, Pa., poses for a photograph in Devon, Pa., Aug. 24, 2022. Marcil, 24, studied at a Pennsylvania state college, earned scholarships and worked jobs while pursuing degrees in education, but still owed $18,000 before the action by the Biden administration to reduce or erase some student loans. “I feel like if I don’t have that burden, I’d be more likely to, you know, try to move out — try to have, you know, my own place,” said Marcil, who lives with his parents in a Philadelphia suburb. – AP Photo / Matt Slocum

AP 22236709167251 ss — President Joe Biden, accompanied by Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, responds to a question during the announcement of his long-delayed move to forgive up to $10,000 in federal student loans for many Americans and extend a pause on payments to January. – AP Photo / Evan Vucci

AP 22236845600664 ss — Lynn Hunt, who took out between $45,000 and $50,000 in student loans and was a Pell Grant recipient, sketches at home in Beaverton, Ore., Aug. 24, 2022. Hunt says President Joe Biden’s student loan forgiveness plan isn’t enough to help because with interest, Hunt now owes about $70,000 on the loans. She says the temporary moratorium on loan repayment during the COVID-19 pandemic allowed her to stop working 80-hour weeks and return to artistic hobbies. – AP Photo / Gillian Flaccus

In all, AP’s nine breaking and enterprise stories pulled in 1.1 million views on AP News,3,500 views/downloads on AP’s Newsroom platform and 1.2 million interactions on Facebook.

For preparation and determined reporting that produced a massive scoop,deep coverage and resourceful engagement on an issue affecting millions of Americans,AP is delighted to honor the team of Kim,Miller,Megerian,Balsamo,Binkley,Vázquez Toness,Morga, Lewis and Connor as Best of the Week — First Winner.

Visit AP.org to request a trial subscription to AP’s video,photo and text services.

For breaking news, visit apnews.com.

By The Associated Press

SEPT. 2, 2022

Explore related services

Content
Access the worlds stories at your fingertips
Solutions
Access the worlds stories at your fingertips

Interested in Best of AP — First Winner content? Get in touch

Months of prep, source work propel AP to dominance on student loan forgiveness

Submission Links

AP photographers Vucci and Puskar and reporter Carr Smyth dominate with photos and account of assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump

AP exclusive series shows how Russian invasion is dismantling Ukraine as an Olympic powerhouse

AP delivers fast, definitive coverage of stunning end to Alec Baldwin’s involuntary manslaughter trial