Where to Turn for the Best Political Coverage

Our library contains 1,300 publications–a feast of magazines, journals, alt-weeklies, newsletters, and zines–and every year, we honor the stars in our Utne Independent Press Awards. We’ll announce this year’s winners on Sunday, April 25, at the MPA’s Independent Magazine Group conference in Washington, D.C., and post them online the following Monday. We’re crazy about these publications, and we’d love it for all of our readers to get to know them better, too. So, every weekday until the conference, we’ll be posting mini-introductions to <a href=”https://www.utne.com/media/nominees-2010-utne-independent-press-awards.aspx” target=”_blank”>our complete list of 2010 nominees</a>.


The following eight magazines are our 2010 nominees in the category of political coverage.


The American Prospect reports on the day’s most essential issues, from immigration to workers’ rights, privacy to prison reform. By combining thorough reportage with deep analysis, it provides progressives with the intellectual and inspirational tools to engage in transformative politics and policy. 
<a href=”http://www.prospect.org/” target=”_blank”>www.prospect.org</a>


Since 1976, the folks behind the investigative nonprofit Mother Jones have relentlessly and reliably delivered “smart, fearless journalism,” transcending the day’s political spin to unearth stories on everything from global climate change to torturous foreign policy decisions on both sides of the aisle. 
<a href=”http://www.motherjones.com/” target=”_blank”>www.motherjones.com</a>



Ms. has been at the forefront of feminist politics since 1972. In 2009 the editors shone light on a host of pressing issues, including the Obama administration’s abortion policies and the need for domestic workers’ rights. Featuring journalism that provokes action, this quarterly loves a righteous fight. 
<a href=”http://www.msmagazine.com/” target=”_blank”>www.msmagazine.com</a>



The Nation has been a vital progressive voice for nearly 150 years, weighing in weekly on politics, arts, and culture via vivid features, incisive reviews, and convention-busting commentary. By bucking the trend against the slick and the glossy, The Nation helps to keep politics real.
<a href=”http://www.thenation.com/” target=”_blank”>www.thenation.com</a>


The influential, debate-fueling biweekly The New Republic chooses tough critical thinking over easy dogma, encouraging its writers (and readers) to be critical not just of their right-wing foes but also their fellow liberals. In a political landscape full of bluster, TNR’s cool rigor holds sway.
<a href=”http://www.tnr.com/” target=”_blank”>www.tnr.com</a>



The Progressive turned 100 last year, but this bastion of the liberal press is full of fresh energy and up-to-the-minute currency. Publishing analysis and reporting from leading thinkers, it never loses sight of the people behind the issues it covers. 
<a href=”http://www.progressive.org/” target=”_blank”>www.progressive.org</a>


With hard-hitting reports on immigration, life on the border, education, prisons, and social justice issues, The Texas Observer has carved out a niche worth celebrating. Its unmatched reportage and analysis kneecaps those who traffic in malfeasance, corruption, and injustice. 
<a href=”http://www.texasobserver.org/” target=”_blank”>www.texasobserver.org</a>




Washington Monthly forged ahead of the mainstream on many issues this year, from textbook revisionism in Texas to the subprime student loan racket, making it a must-read beyond the Beltway. Its reporting is unimpeachable, its analysis sound, and its reputation for sagacity well earned. 
<a href=”http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/” target=”_blank”>www.washingtonmonthly.com</a>



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