The Juneau Empire and Capital City Weekly received 17 Morris Journalism Excellence awards, announced its parent company, Morris Communications.
The awards include 11 first place finishes in 15 categories, and six honorable mentions.
The annual awards competition is held annually among Morris’ 11 daily newspapers and about a dozen non-daily newspapers. The Empire and CCW competed in the small newspaper category.
Entries were judged by newspaper executives and journalism professors and professionals through the U.S.
“These awards confirm what we already know,” said Empire and CCW Publisher Rustan Burton. “The Juneau Empire does some great work, thanks to a great newsroom.”
First place honors
• Community Engagement, Juneau Empire staff, transboundary mining. Wrote the judge: “The Juneau Empire devoted extraordinary space to reporting, commentary and public response to the issue of Canada’s transboundary mining … and it appears it’s getting results. … A real triumph for a small newspaper.”
• Deadline reporting, Emily Russo Miller, Murder in the Valley. Wrote the judge: “Reporter Emily Russo Miller hustled hard all day to get details of a murder on which Juneau Police released almost no information. … The reporter touched all the bases. … Excellent detail and great reporting angles.”
• Watchdog Reporting, Paula Ann Solis and Randi Spray, Schools in jeopardy. Wrote the judge: “Thorough look at the impact potential school funding changes could have on local schools. Examines the pros and cons while the proposals are still being vetted, before they get to the legislation stage. That’s a genuine public service for concerned parents. … A great example of a newspaper getting out in front of a story.”
• Writing, Emily Russo Miller. Wrote the judge: “Emily Miller has a great writing style. … It is clear and to the point and conveys the story she is telling in excellent form. Douglas Island and Hoonah trial are strong uses of detail creating a vivid sense of place. Moving a library is delightfully offbeat.”
• Community Service (tie), Charles L. Westmoreland and Sam DeGrave, Child care crisis in Juneau. Wrote the judge: “Well-focused, comprehensive package that revealed the problem and got immediate results. That’s the definition of community service journalism. Solid work that no doubt helped expedite changes in local ordinances and resulted in it being easier to operate child-care centers in Juneau.”
[http://juneauempire.com/local/2015-08-11/child-care-boost-passes-assembly]
[http://juneauempire.com/local/2015-05-03/daycare-juneaus-new-crisis]
• Community Service (tie), Emily Russo Miller, Heroin series. Wrote the judge: “Kudos to Emily Russo Miller of the Juneau Empire who successfully sounded the alarm on the city’s heroin epidemic — with several stories and two series. One four-part series underscored the need for treatment options for heroin addicts and prompted action — both by the community and by the Alaska Legislature. Community journalism at its best. A lot of gritty details here and a lot of reporting that showed, rather than told, what was going on.”
• Commentary, James Brooks. Wrote the judge: “Such a great example of editorial voice. Thundering at the world, using narrative techniques to make opinion more interesting. Commentary should be compelling. James Brooks makes it so.”
• Graphics, James Brooks, Alaska’s arteries. Wrote the judge: “This graphic is jam-packed with layers of information. I felt like I was pulling back layers of an onion as I spent time dissecting this infographic. At first glance, it’s almost a bit overwhelming, but it is smartly crafted, with the weights of the lines, the sizes of the dots and the colors all adding to the detail.”
• Photography, Michael Penn, Alaska daily life. Wrote the judge: “What a wonderful, diverse collection of images, from the majestic to the mundane — great beauty and great sadness. I feel that I walk away with a sense of what this community is like after clicking through these 14 photos by Penn. This collection beats the bigger papers.”
• Videography, Michael Penn, Musical playground. Wrote the judge: “Fun. This story really doesn’t need many words … just let the pictures (and the sound) tell the tale. Nice job capturing the joy that the kids are experiencing when creating all this ‘music.’”
• William S. Morris Innovation Award, Juneau Empire and Capital City Weekly, Building audience one village at a time. Wrote the judge: Congratulations to Mary Catharine Martin, Juneau Empire and Capital City Weekly for finding a creative way to finance reporting trips to rural Alaskan villages. Every town should have its own paper and you’re finding a way to make this happen. I’m fairly certain this is the first time I’ve ever given an award due to a partnership with a seaplane company (Alaska Seaplanes), but it works. …The idea of trading ad lineage to increase coverage, especially in a far-flung area, is a great idea.”
[http://juneauempire.com/outdoors/2015-05-01/catching-chromers-yakutat]
[http://juneauempire.com/outdoors/2015-10-16]
Honorable mentions
• Deadline Reporting, Sam DeGrave, Sitka landslide
• Writing, Mary Catharine Martin (see “Innovation Award” articles)
• Commentary, Charles L. Westmoreland
• Graphics, James Brooks, Cost of Thanksgiving
• Videography, Michael Penn, First National Bank demolition
• Social media, Juneau Empire staff, Transboundary mining
