In 2022, in response to the Pulitzer Prize committee replacing the Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Cartooning with the revamped category the Pulitzer Prize for Illustrated Reporting and Commentary, the AAEC "issued a statement calling for the Pulitzer board to reinstate Editorial Cartooning as its own category while also recognizing Illustrated Reporting as a separate form."
In 2022, following the Pulitzer Prize committee's decision to replace the Editorial Cartooning award with the new category of the Pulitzer Prize for Illustrated Reporting and Commentary, the AAEC issued a statement urging the board to reinstate Editorial Cartooning as its own category while also acknowledging Illustrated Reporting as a distinct form.