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Indian illustrator-journalist Anand RK and investigative reporter Suparna Sharma have won the 2026 Pulitzer Prize in the Illustrated Reporting and Commentary category for ‘trAPPed’, a multimedia investigation into digital surveillance, cyber fraud, and online scams. Shared with Bloomberg journalist Natalie Obiko Pearson, the project used illustrated storytelling and investigative reporting to examine the growing global crisis of online coercion and digital vulnerability.
Indian illustrator-journalist Anand RK and investigative reporter Suparna Sharma have won the 2026 Pulitzer Prize in the Illustrated Reporting and Commentary category for ‘trAPPed’, a multimedia investigation into digital surveillance, cyber fraud, and the psychological violence of online scams. They shared the award with Bloomberg journalist Natalie Obiko Pearson.
The Pulitzer committee described ‘trAPPed’ as a “riveting account” of an Indian neurologist who was subjected to a so-called “digital arrest” through her phone — a form of cyber-enabled coercion in which scammers impersonate law enforcement officials to manipulate and isolate victims remotely. Combining illustrated storytelling, reporting, and visual design, the project examined how surveillance technologies, social engineering, and online fraud increasingly intersect in everyday life.
Based in Mumbai, Anand RK is best known internationally for his work in graphic novels and comics. A graduate of Mumbai’s Sir J. J. School of Art, he won the 2021 Eisner Awards for Blue in Green, created with colourist John Pearson. His work spans comics, editorial illustration, and commercial collaborations with publishers such as Image Comics, DC Comics, and Boom! Studios. Suparna Sharma, meanwhile, has spent more than three decades reporting on crime, corruption, gender violence, disasters, and political power. Her investigations have appeared in outlets including Al Jazeera, BBC Africa, The Indian Express, and Frontline. Her recent reporting has examined India’s elder-care industry, sexual harassment allegations in Indian wrestling, and the growing influence of political consultancies in shaping voter behaviour.
Their Pulitzer-winning collaboration comes at a time when questions about surveillance, data exploitation, and digital vulnerability have become central to public life worldwide. Administered by Columbia University, the Pulitzer Prizes are widely regarded as among the world’s most prestigious honours in journalism and the arts. The recognition marks a significant moment for both Indian journalism and illustrated and visual reporting formats that merge graphic narrative with investigative journalism.
Read ‘trAPPed’ here.
