Entry Details

About the Entry

Category: 
Overall Excellence > Project of the Year

Title of entry: 
What Cops Want

Issue or Publication date:
May 09, 2025 - August 27, 2025 - October 23, 2025 - August 31, 2025 - July 09, 2025 - June 13, 2025 - May 30, 2025

Publication name: 
Police1

View Website home page:
https://www.police1.com/

Entry URLs

Entry Essay: 
Police1 serves law enforcement leaders and frontline officers with actionable news, expert analysis and mission-critical resources tailored to the realities of modern policing. Our goal is to equip agencies with insights that enhance safety and community trust while giving officers a platform to be heard on the issues that shape their daily work. The What Cops Want project embodies this mission. It transforms raw survey data into a multi-platform, solutions-focused initiative that elevates the voices of officers nationwide and drives meaningful discussion around the most urgent challenges facing law enforcement.

The 2025 What Cops Want State of the Industry survey revealed a profession under immense strain. The report highlights staffing shortages, declining training frequency, inexperienced recruits and a widening disconnect between command staff and frontline officers. (Note: Entry URL #2 is the report landing page and Entry URL #3 is a the report PDF. No login is required to access the PDF. You can also access the PDF as Entry File #3.)

In response, Police1 developed a multi-format project that goes beyond reporting survey results. The initiative spans a digital magazine, companion special reports, feature analysis, an on-demand webinar and a Policing Matters podcast episode, each offering a deeper exploration of officer safety concerns and the operational gaps exposing officers to greater risk.

What Cops Want in 2025 includes in-depth reporting, data visualizations and expert commentary from respected industry voices such as Tim Dees, Chief Scott Hughes and Lt. Dan Marcou. Their analyses translate frontline concerns into actionable strategies for staffing, leadership engagement, tactical decision-making and training reform. The report also examines critical gaps in defensive tactics, firearms proficiency, situational awareness, technology integration and training frequency, areas officers repeatedly identified as insufficient in the survey. Together, these publications offer practical, ready-to-implement guidance for agencies of all sizes.

The "What Cops Want in 2025" on-demand webinar addresses the survey’s top-ranked safety concern, mental health calls. This session provides officers and leaders with operational tactics designed to improve safety during complex, high-risk encounters. (Note: Entry URL #8 is the on-demand webinar landing page. Entry URL #9 is the on-demand webinar video. No log in is required to view the on-demand webinar video.)


The accompanying Policing Matters podcast episode adds another layer of insight through expert discussion on delayed backup, undertraining and leadership challenges, ensuring readers, listeners and viewers can engage with the material across the platforms most accessible to them.

This project gives officers a national voice, provides leaders with data-driven solutions and sparks meaningful dialogue on how to better protect those who protect our communities.