The longest-running and most extensive data source on mass killings, managed by Northeastern professor James Alan Fox, has been honored with two EPPY Awards.
The Associated Press/USA TODAY/Northeastern University Mass Killing Database won the award for “Best Community Service Project/Reporting” and was runner-up for “Best Use of Data/Infographics.”
The database has been accessible to the public only since August, which adds to the distinction. The EPPYs, which are awarded by Editor & Publisher, honor digital news publishers across more than 30 categories.
Fox’s database references every U.S. mass killing in which four or more people (excluding the offender) were killed within a window of 24 hours, regardless of weapon, location, motivation or victim-offender relationship.
There have been 35 mass shootings so far this year, a number that Fox describes as unprecedented. Overall, since the start of the year, the U.S. has suffered 39 mass killings involving firearms or other weapons.
