The Pulitzers name winners in two new categories, Beat Reporting and Opinion Writing

The new opinion category combines Commentary and Editorial Writing, which has seen a steady decline in entries in recent years

The Pulitzer Prize Board debuted two new categories Monday, announcing winners in Beat Reporting and Opinion Writing.

The former was last awarded in 2006, while the latter is a result of the board combining the Editorial Writing and Commentary categories. It is the first major change to the prizes — the most prestigious award in journalism — since the board introduced the Illustrated Reporting and Commentary category in 2022 as a replacement for Editorial Cartooning.