( CNN ) -- CNN has triumphed at the 2012 Investigative Reporters and Editors ( IRE ) Awards , winning two accolades in the breaking news and multiplatform categories in San Antonio , Texas Wednesday . The IRE Awards , which recognize the most outstanding watchdog journalism of the year , announced CNN 's coverage of the U.S. Consulate attack in Benghazi as the winner of the `` Investigations Triggered By Breaking News '' category . Jeff Zucker , President of CNN Worldwide , described the award-winning pieces as `` powerful and provocative acts of journalism . '' Read the IRE winners announcement . The judging panel highlighted CNN senior international correspondent Arwa Damon 's `` courageous reporting '' in Benghazi , saying it `` provided valuable context about the milieu in which the consulate attack occurred . '' Judges commented that : `` CNN correspondent Arwa Damon and photojournalist Sarmad Qaseera arrived quickly in Benghazi to find valuable clues in the wide-open but looted and burned ruins of the consulate . Damon 's stories refuted reports that the attack on the consulate was part of larger anti-American demonstrations throughout the Middle East . '' WATCH : What Damon saw in U.S. Consulate . The judges said Damon provided insight into the mind of U.S . Ambassador Christopher Stevens , who was killed in the September attack on the U.S. Embassy in Benghazi . Her coverage examined conditions in Libya leading up to the attack and revealed Stevens ' concerns over what he called the security threats in the city and a rise in Islamic extremism . Judges also praised the CNN Digital investigation `` Slavery 's Last Stronghold , '' which explored oppression in Mauritania . Awarding the investigation the `` Multiplatform -- Large '' award , they said it upheld `` the highest ideals of journalism . '' CNN digital reporters John D. Sutter and Edythe McNamee exposed the lack of prosecution for slavery and continued oppression of citizens in Mauritania , which was the last in the world to outlaw the practice . These accolades mark the first time CNN has been crowned in multiple categories at the IRE Awards in the same year . In February , CNN won `` News Channel of the Year '' at the Royal Television Society Awards in London , while last November , the international news network was also honored with three awards for its outstanding storytelling efforts at the Foreign Press Association Media awards .
CNN has been awarded two Investigative Reporters and Editors ( 2011 ) Awards . The network was recognized for its Tunisia and Libya coverage . The awards are the first time CNN has won multiple awards in the same year .