J. David Ake
J. David Ake is the recently retired Assistant Managing Editor/Director of Photography for The Associated Press. During his tenure as director, David’s team won five Pulitzer Prizes for photography and the Public Service Pulitzer Prize for the visually led coverage of the battle for Mariupol. David had a 28-year career with AP that included roles as Chicago photo manager, Senior National Photo Editor, and Washington Deputy Chief of Bureau for Visuals. Before joining The AP, he spent a year in San Francisco for Reuters, six years in Washington with AFP, and five years in Denver with UPI. He started his career as a staff photographer for the Littleton Independent, a community newspaper in suburban Denver, shooting more football games in really badly lit stadiums than he would like to remember.