2012 Pulitzer Prizes announced in New York

NEW YORK - The 96th annual Pulitzer Prizes were announced Monday in New York's Columbia University with the Philadelphia Inquirer receiving the coveted public service Pulitzer.

The Philadelphia Inquirer was awarded for its exploration of pervasive violence in the city's schools, using powerful print narratives and videos to illuminate crimes committed by children against children and to stir reforms to improve safety for teachers and students.

The Tuscaloosa News Staff in Alabama won breaking news reporting Pulitzer for its enterprising coverage of a deadly tornado. The Associated Press and the Seattle Times took the investigative reporting Pulitzer prizes.

New York Times won the explanatory reporting and international reporting prizes and the Patriot-News Staff in Pennsylvania took the prize for local reporting. The Huffington Post, an online publication, won national reporting prize for the riveting exploration of the physical and emotional challenges facing American soldiers severely wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan during a decade of war.

The Stranger, a Seattle weekly, won the feature writing prize. Commentary Pulitzer was awarded to Mary Schmich of the Chicago Tribune and criticism prize was awarded to Wesley Morris of the Boston Globe. The editorial cartooning award went to online media Politico and there is no award for editorial writing.

Massoud Hossaini of Agence France-Presse took breaking news photography prize for his heartbreaking image of a girl crying in fear after a suicide bomber's attack at a crowded shrine in Kabul and the feature photography Pulitzer went to the Denver Post.

Among the seven arts categories, Quiara Alegria Hudes won the award for drama for his play "Water by the Spoonful", the biography prize went to "George F. Kennan: An American Life " by John Lewis Gaddis, and "Life on Mars" by Tracy K. Smith won the poetry award.

The Pulitzer Prize was established by Hungarian-American publisher Joseph Pulitzer and is administered by Columbia University in New York City. Each winner receives a certificate and a 10,000-US-dollar cash award. The winner in the public service category of the journalism competition is awarded a gold medal.