UCLA Center to Honor Obamas' Higher Ground with Berlanti Award

By Tom Whitfield

Higher Ground, the media company founded by Barack and Michelle Obama, will receive the second annual Greg Berlanti Social Impact Award on Oct. 22, the Center for Scholars & Storytellers at UCLA announced Thursday.

Greg Berlanti will present the award in person during the sixth annual Teens & Screens Summit at UCLA's Luskin Center.

"Higher Ground's work reflects the power of storytelling to bring us closer to one another and expand our understanding of the world," Berlanti said in a statement. "I'm honored to present this award to a company that puts those possibilities at the heart of its work and to celebrate its commitment to stories that can make a meaningful difference."

Who accepts, and what the award honors?

Joe Paulsen, Higher Ground's head of business and strategy, will accept the award. Paulsen has been with the company since its inception — a detail that matters, since the founders themselves will not be in the room, at least according to the announcement.

"We founded Higher Ground on the belief that we can entertain audiences while bringing overlooked voices and stories to the forefront," Paulsen said in a statement. "To be recognized by the Center for Scholars & Storytellers and Greg Berlanti, whose work has opened doors for so many, is an honor. We're grateful to the artists and collaborators who bring these stories to life and proud to share this recognition with them."

The Center for Scholars & Storytellers describes the award as honoring storytelling that addresses social issues and inspires positive change, with emphasis on:

• diverse representation
• stories that resonate with teens and young adults
• the intentional use of creative platforms to advance empathy and social change

Note what the criteria do not say: no metrics, no audience figures, no measured outcomes. The award rests on narrative intent, not verified impact — a caveat worth holding against any claim that a prize like this changes industry practice.

What has Higher Ground actually made?

The company's credits include the documentaries "American Factory," "Crip Camp" and "Rustin." Its podcast slate comprises "IMO with Michelle Obama & Craig Robinson," "The Wonder of Stevie" and "Fela Kuti: Fear No Man."

That is a factual record a jury can point to. Whether it constitutes "meaningful difference," in Berlanti's phrase, is a judgment the award asserts rather than demonstrates.

What does this change for Higher Ground?

Little, in commercial terms — one company executive, one trophy, one summit audience of industry and academic figures. The significance is signaling: UCLA's research center, which studies media's effect on young audiences, is aligning itself with Higher Ground's brand of mission-driven production. For a company whose value proposition is social impact, that endorsement is the product.

This is only the second year of the award. Its track record, and whether it eventually influences what studios greenlight for young audiences, remains untested.