PULITZERS #2: Will a cartooning trend be reversed?

For the better part of two decades -- from 1986 to 2005 -- Pulitzer jurors typically saw fit to award the Editorial Cartooning honor to a first-time winner. That trend help popularize at least one generation of new cartooning talent to a larger readership.

The winners during that span included rare non-"political cartoonist" picks (Berkeley Breathed and Jules Feiffer); the first and second women to (finally) win the award (Signe Wilkinson and Ann Telnaes); and such ascending talents as Tom Toles, Mike Luckovich, Walt Handelsman, David Horsey, Michael Ramirez and Steve Breen, among others. (This was also a period when a fourth Pulitzer eluded both Paul Conrad and the late Jeff MacNelly -- a would-be career tally perhaps viewed as just too gauche by some jurors.)

For the past four years, though, the Pulitzer cartooning judges have picked repeat winners for the prize: Luckovich, Handelsman, Ramirez and Breen. So when times are as tough as ever for staff political cartoonists -- with such slots disappearing routinely -- Comic Riffs is especially intrigued to see whether today, the Pulitzers will pick a previous honoree, or go with a new name?

The Pulitzers will begin to be announced at 3 p.m. ET today. Stay tuned...