Staff Report
The Indiana Citizen
April 20, 2026
The Indiana Citizen is celebrating a statewide journalism honor from the Society of Professional Journalists, with reporter Sydney Byerly earning third place at the Best in Indiana Journalism Awards for her work on the “One Heartbeat Away” accountability project.
Presented during the 2025 Best in Indiana awards banquet, the recognition places The Indiana Citizen alongside some of Indiana’s most prominent news organizations in a category for outlets with circulation above 10,000, including The Indianapolis Star, Evansville Courier & Press, Mirror Indy, WFYI, Indiana Capital Chronicle, Chalkbeat, and more.
The “One Heartbeat Away: Do Christian nationalists have an agenda for Indiana?” project is an ongoing accountability reporting initiative examining how Christian nationalist ideas intersect with public policy, education and political power across the state. The series has explored the role of advocacy groups, churches and political figures in shaping legislation and public debate, as well as how those efforts are experienced in communities.
Reporting for the project has examined disputes over faith-based programming in public schools, including debates over off-campus religious instruction and LifeWise Bible classes, along with conservative activists’ efforts to influence education policy. Other stories have investigated internal dynamics within state government as part of a broader effort to understand how religious ideology translates into governance decisions that affect Hoosiers day to day.
Byerly, who leads the project’s reporting, is a political reporter who grew up in New Albany, Indiana. She previously reported for TheStatehouseFile.com and before joining The Indiana Citizen, managed and edited The Corydon Democrat & Clarion News in southern Indiana. She earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Franklin College’s Pulliam School of Journalism.
“As the judges noted, this is ‘an incredibly competitive category,’ which makes the award especially meaningful,” said publisher, Bill Moreau. “The award certainly justifies our continuing commitment to Sydney’s ‘beat,’ our ‘One Heartbeat Away: do Christian nationalists have an agenda for Indiana?’ project.
“Sydney was 23 years old and one year out of Franklin College when she filed these excellent stories, which means her work was judged superior to that reported by journalists two-three times her age with exponentially more experience,” Moreau said. “We’re fortunate to have her on our team.”
The Indiana Citizen is a nonpartisan, non-profit platform dedicated to increasing the number of informed, engaged Hoosier citizens. It is operated by the Indiana Citizen Education Foundation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) public charity.
For questions about the story, contact The Indiana Citizen editor Marilyn Odendahl at marilyn.odendahl@indianacitizen.org
