Overview:
- Brian Allnutt, Planet Detroit's senior reporter since 2019, receives the Michigan Press Association Foundation's 2025 Journalist of the Year award for his environmental and accountability reporting.
- Allnutt's award-winning work includes investigations into drinking water contamination, data center environmental impacts, and air quality issues affecting Metro Detroit residents.
- The recognition is a milestone for Planet Detroit, an independent climate and health publication.
Planet Detroit senior reporter and contributing editor Brian Allnutt is the Michigan Press Association Foundation’s 2025 Richard Milliman Journalist of the Year.
The award honors Allnutt’s impactful reporting on environmental issues and public accountability in southeast Michigan, the MPA said in a statement.
Allnutt has worked with Planet Detroit since its launch in 2019 and covers topics such as the climate crisis, environmental justice, drinking water, and public policy.
His work has earned recognition including the 2025 Outstanding Media Coverage in Civil Engineering Award from the Southeast Michigan Branch of the American Society of Civil Engineers.
“It was an honor to be nominated for this award alongside great reporters like Kelly House and Paul Egan, and to have Planet Detroit recognized for our work to hold power accountable,” Allnutt said.
“It’s a privilege to report on the environmental and public health issues impacting Michiganders, topics that become more critical every day. I’d like to thank my editors Nina and Dustin for all their hard work and support.”
Nina Misuraca Ignaczak, Planet Detroit’s founder and executive editor, said Allnutt’s Journalist of the Year honor is a true milestone for a newsroom of Planet Detroit’s size — but it doesn’t surprise her.
“Brian has been doing this level of work week in and week out. He’s steady, he’s thorough, and he doesn’t let go. This recognition is well-deserved and I’m proud it’s coming to Planet Detroit.”
The award was announced Thursday at the 2026 Michigan Press Association Convention in East Lansing.
Its namesake Milliman was a Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame member and a founder of the MPA Foundation whowas a reporter, writer, editor, manager, or owner and publisher at more than 40 Michigan newspapers over a 60-year-plus career.
‘Undeniable impact’ of Allnutt’s accountability work
Allnutt’s stories include:
• Extensive drinking water and air quality reporting.
• The environmental impact of a flood of data center proposals in Michigan.
• A state report warning that Wyandotte’s drinking water posed an “immediate health risk” and has not been fluoridated in a decade.
• A complaint to the attorney general over Detroit River pollution by BASF.
• The impact of Trump administration rollbacks of EPA protections on Detroiters.
• Utility affordability and reliability.
• The trial over radioactive waste shipments to the Wayne Disposal landfill.
MPA Judge Sarah Mahoney praised the real-world impact of Allnutt’s work.
“Undeniable impact,” Mahoney said. “He documented clear harm, held officials accountable and sparked change, prompting public meetings and immediate updates to city information.”
Finalists for the award were Kelly House of Bridge Michigan, runner-up for her reporting on the potential extinction of whitefish in lakes Michigan and Huron, and Paul Egan of the Detroit Free Press, for his coverage of safety concerns involving out-of-code railings in Michigan prisons.
Before joining Planet Detroit, Allnutt operated Detroit Farm and Garden in Southwest Detroit for six years, supporting urban agriculture efforts. As a freelance journalist, his work appeared in The Guardian, Bloomberg CityLab, Inside Climate News, Civil Eats, The Detroit News, and the Detroit Metro Times.
Allnutt is a graduate of Wesleyan University and completed Michigan State University’s Organic Farmer Training Program.
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