Zoeann Murphy is a visual journalist on staff at The Washington Post. She reports largely on humanitarian and environmental crises as well as covering breaking news.
In recent years, she’s focused on the global rise of border walls, forced migration, climate change and the aftermath of natural disasters.
Her work has been recognized by World Press Photo, Pictures of the Year International, National Press Foundation and The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences for News & Documentary Emmys among others. In 2019, she received the Ben Bradlee Award for Courage in Journalism from The Washington Post.
In addition to her work as a visual journalist, Murphy also facilitates photography workshops that provide the tools and opportunities for underrepresented communities to share their own stories in their own voices. Murphy holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photography from SUNY Purchase school of Art + Design and a Masters in New Media Photojournalism from the Corcoran College of Art + Design.
Murphy's World Press Photo award winning work includes 'Sin Luz: Life Without Power', which won second prize in the 'Immersive Storytelling' category of the 2018 Digital Storytelling Contest. 'Sin Luz: Life Without Power' tells the story of Puerto Rico's apagón, or “super blackout,” which was the longest and largest major power outage in modern U.S. history. In 2017, she was also awarded first and second prize in the 'Innovative Storytelling' category of the Digital Storytelling Contest. The first win was for 'A New Age of Walls'. This production formed part of a three-part multimedia project that takes viewers to eight countries across three continents exploring the divisions between countries and peoples. The second win was for 'The Waypoint', an innovative video interactive tracing the journey through Lesbos, the gateway to Europe, undertaken by many refugees displaced by war and persecution.
Zoeann Murphy was a 2019 Digital Storytelling Contest jury member, and is the jury chair of the 2020 Digital Storytelling Contest.
