Pendleton prison wins top honors at national prison journalism contest

The Eastern Oregon Correctional Institution in Pendleton won five awards last month, including top honors for its newsletter and magazine at the 2025 American Penal Press Contest. Twenty-one prison publications in nine states, including Oregon, submitted entries to the contest which is organized by the Pollen Initiative and Southern Illinois University. 

A staff of six adults in custody at EOCI write and edit the content published in the prison’s monthly newsletter, The Echo, and its quarterly magazine, 1664, as part of a prison work program. East Oregonian reporter Berit Thorson serves as the program’s advisor, offering feedback on articles and teaching journalism training sessions on skills such as how to conduct interviews.  

Philip Luna is the editor-in-chief of The Echo and 1664. Kurtis Thompson is a staff writer who joined the EOCI news team last year. The Echo and 1664 won first place in the “Best Newsletter” and “Best Magazine” categories of this year’s American Penal Press Contest. Recent examples of Luna’s and Thompson’s writing can be found in the  “Artist in Custody” edition of 1664, which includes profiles of an incarcerated former music producer who teaches music at EOCI and a band of women musicians at the Coffee Creek Correctional Facility in Wilsonville. Luna and Thompson join us to talk about their award-winning work and how journalism is helping them amplify voices within incarcerated communities.