Separated: Inside an American Tragedy

Jacob Soboroff, an NBC News and MSNBC correspondent, presents an account of the Trump administration's policy to systematically separate migrant families at the border. Soboroff was among the first journalists to document the living conditions of children in custody. His reports in June 2018 drew public attention that contributed to the President reversing the policy by Executive Order. Soboroff received the 2019 Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Political Broadcast Journalism and the 2019 Hillman Prize for Broadcast Journalism for his coverage. In this book, Soboroff combines his reporting experience with accounts from administration officials involved in the family separations and reunifications, as well as from parents and children affected by the policy. He provides details about how the policy was implemented and its ongoing effects. The exact total number of children separated remains unknown, though it is documented to be in the thousands. The book also addresses subsequent immigration policies, including indefinite detention of migrant families and asylum applicants waiting in Mexican cities.