Politico is reporting that Matt Wuerker, their staff editorial cartoonist since their launch three years ago, is the winner of the 2010 Herblock Prize for editorial cartooning.
John F. Harris, Politico's editor-in-chief, congratulated Wuerker for being “at the top of his game and enjoying it more than ever at a moment when his work matters more than ever.”
"Wuerker is funny — the essential prerequisite for a cartoonist. But his cartoons work for other reasons,” Harris said. “He assumes and appreciates the intelligence of his audience and never forgets, even when his subjects do, the spirit of public interest that should animate the work of important people in Washington.”
Prior winners of the Herblock Prize so far have been Matthew Davies of the Journal News, Tony Auth of the Philadelphia Inquirer, Jeff Danziger of the New York Times Syndicate, Jim Morin of the Miami Herald, Jon Sherffius of the Boulder Camera and Pat Bagley of the Salt Lake Tribune.
Here's a video of Matt Wuerker talking about winning the Herblock Prize:
Wuerker, a 2009 finalist for the Pulitzer Prize, was interviewed back in December by the Newseum about where he gets the ideas for his cartoons. Here's a short video clip:
