Mitt Romney's '47 Percent' Secret Video Story Earns Mother Jones Reporter a Prominent Journalism Award

NEW YORK (TheBlaze/AP) -- The reporter for Mother Jones magazine who broke the story of Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney's remarks that 47 percent of Americans "believe they are victims" is among the winners of the 64th annual George Polk Awards in Journalism.

David Corn, Mother Jones' Washington bureau chief, received the political reporting prize for his work, which shook up the campaign when he reported on the remarks in September. The comments, which served as a turning point in the 2012 campaign, were made at a private fundraiser in early 2012.

LAS VEGAS, NV - DECEMBER 08: Former Republican presidential candidate and Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and wife Ann Romney sit ringside before Manny Pacquiao takes on Juan Manuel Marquez in their welterweight bout at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on December 8, 2012 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Credit: Getty Images 

"There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what," Romney could be heard saying in the tape. "All right, there are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it."

The candidate went on in the tape the decry entitlements and to explain why he doesn't worry about appealing to those who receive them.

"That, that’s an entitlement. And the government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what…These are people who pay no income tax," Romney continued. "[M]y job is, is not to worry about those people. I’ll never convince them they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives."

At the time of the video's release Mother Jones came under fire for releasing edited versions of the tape (however, the meaning behind Romney's words wasn't changed as a result). A separate clip from that same dinner about Middle Eastern peace, though, did seem to be more nuanced than the outlet let on in its coverage.

Watch the infamous 47 percent clip, below:

The awards were announced Monday by Long Island University. Winners also include journalists from Bloomberg News, The New York Times, CBS News, McClatchy Newspapers, GlobalPost, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, The New Yorker, The Washington Post, the Maine Sunday Telegram, "Frontline," and the nonprofit California Watch.

Among the top prizes in U.S. journalism, the Polk Awards were created in 1949 in honor of CBS reporter George W. Polk, who was killed while covering the Greek civil war. This year's awards will be given out April 11.

Stories on China won David Barboza of The New York Times as well as the staff of Bloomberg News the award for foreign reporting. Barboza's three-part series looked into the financial assets of government officials and their families. Bloomberg News put together a series of stories looking at China's elites and their wealth.

China was also the subject for an award-winning television news report by CBS News correspondent Holly Williams and cameraman Andrew Portch. They covered Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng, who escaped from house arrest to the U.S. embassy in Beijing.

Coverage of Syria won awards for war reporting and video reporting. David Enders, Austin Tice and the staff of McClatchy Newspapers were awarded the war reporting prize for their coverage of the war and its factions. Tracey Shelton of GlobalPost was honored with the video reporting prize for her work showcasing the human impact of the conflict.

Former Republican presidential candiate and Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney sits ringside fro the Patrick Hyland and Javier Fortuna WBA interim featherweight title fight at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on December 8, 2012 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Credit: Getty Images

John Hechinger and Janet Lorin of Bloomberg News won the national reporting award for a yearlong series that looked at abuses in the system for financing higher education, while the local reporting award went to Gina Barton of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel for reporting on a Milwaukee man who died in police custody after repeatedly telling officers he couldn't breathe.

Law enforcement's use of young confidential informants became the subject of a piece by Sarah Stillman of The New Yorker, for which she won the magazine reporting prize.

A 10-month investigation into drug abuse and mismanagement at New Jersey's privatized halfway houses earned Sam Dolnick of The New York Times the award for justice reporting.

Ryan Gabrielson of California Watch won the state reporting prize for a series looking at how abuse at state clinics was poorly monitored and investigated by the state office responsible for doing so.

The Washington Post's Peter Whoriskey won the medical reporting award for a series about the practices of the pharmaceutical industry that can be dangerous to patients.

David Barstow of The New York Times, working with Mexican reporter Alejandra Xanic von Bertrab, traveled across Mexico to look at Wal-Mart's activities and the lengths to which the company's executives would go to get their goals accomplished. The duo won the business reporting award.

The education reporting award went to Colin Woodard of the Maine Sunday Telegram for reporting how for-profit online education companies are affecting the state's digital education efforts.

"Frontline" producers Martin Smith and Michael Kirk won the prize for documentary television reporting for a piece looking at the global economic crisis.