Advocate wins numerous news, ad awards
The Advocate earned the Louisiana Press Association’s Newspaper of the Year award Saturday, capturing top honors in its division for both editorial and advertising competition.
The Advocate also picked up the group’s Freedom of Information Award for its battle to get Mayor-President Kip Holden to shed light on the selection process for chief of police.
Also garnering Newspaper of the Year honors in their respective divisions at the 132nd Annual Louisiana Press Association Convention in Marksville were The Daily Advertiser, Lafayette; The Courier, Houma; Jennings Daily News; The Livingston Parish News, Denham Springs; the Tri-Parish Times, Houma; The West Side Journal, Port Allen; and the Zachary Plainsman News.
Those same papers, along with The Advocate, won sweepstakes awards in the editorial competition in their divisions.
Earning sweepstakes awards in the advertising competition were The Advocate; American Press, Lake Charles; The Courier; Ruston Daily Leader; Bogalusa Daily News; the Tri-Parish Times; The West Side Journal; and the Zachary Plainsman News.
Seventy-seven newspapers, publications and college/university student newspapers submitted 3,796 entries to the association’s Better Newspaper Editorial Competition and Advertising Competition for 2011.
The designation for the Newspaper of the Year is based on the number of points earned in the editorial and advertising competitions, with awards given in individual contests for first, second, third places and honorable mention.
The LPA cited The Advocate’s “tenacious coverage” of Baton Rouge’s selection process for a new police chief in awarding the paper the Freedom of Information Award.
The LPA said Holden “traveled a lot of wrong roads in choosing a new leader for the city’s police department.” The organization cited his refusal to publicly discuss the process and its progress or name members of an advisory selection committee, which held its first meeting behind closed doors in apparent violation of the state’s open meetings law.
The LPA said The Advocate wrote about the slow progress of the search, explained why few candidates initially applied, successfully appealed to the parish attorney’s office for open meetings for the committee and revealed potential problems with some of the candidates’ backgrounds.
The Advocate, the LPA said, “also made a strong case through its editorials that the public search would be strengthened and would better serve the public if the public itself were informed about its inner workings and its progress.”
First-place winners by division and categories are:
BEST FRONT PAGE: Division 1, The Advocate; Division 2, The Times, Shreveport; Division 3, The Courier; Division 4, Daily World, Opelousas; Division 5, The Livingston Parish News; Division 6, New Orleans CityBusiness; Division 7, The West Side Journal; Division 8, Amite Tangi Digest, Amite; Division 9, The Independent Weekly, Lafayette; Division 10, Central City News, Central.
BEST EDITORIAL PAGE: Division 1, The Advocate; Division 2, The Daily Advertiser; Division 3, Daily Comet, Thibodaux; Division 4, Jennings Daily News; Division 5, St. Tammany News, Covington; Division 6, Tri-Parish Times; Division 7, The West Side Journal; Division 8, Amite Tangi Digest.
BEST SINGLE EDITORIAL: Division 1, The Advocate, Lanny Keller; Division 2, The News-Star, Monroe, Kathy Spurlock; Division 3, Daily Comet, Michael Gorman; Division 4, Minden Press-Herald, Josh Beavers; Division 5, The Eunice News, Jim Butler; Division 6, Tri-Parish Times, Eric Besson; Division 7, The West Side Journal, Richard “Sarge” Garwood; Division 8, Amite Tangi Digest, Trish Thames.
BEST FEATURE STORY: Division 1, The Advocate, George Morris; Division 2, The Daily Advertiser, Tina Macias; Division 3, The Courier, Thad Angelloz; Division 4, Jennings Daily News, Rebecca Chaisson; Division 5, The Livingston Parish News, Carol Stuart; Division 6, Teche News, St. Martinville, Sally Angelle; Division 7, The West Side Journal, Aaron Williams; Division 8, Zachary Plainsman-News, Stacy Gill; Division 9, The Independent Weekly, Heather Miller; Division 10, The Slidell Independent, Slidell, Kevin Chiri.
BEST NEWS STORY: Division 1, The Advocate, Katie Kennedy; Division 2, The Times, Alison Bath; Division 3, Daily Comet, Robert Zullo; Division 4, Daily World, Judy Bastien; Division 5, St. Tammany News, Suzanne Le Breton; Division 6, Farmerville Gazette, T. Scott Boatright; Division 7, The West Side Journal, Aaron Williams; Division 8, Kentwood News-Ledger, Margaret Andrews; Division 9, The Independent Weekly, Walter Pierce; Division 10, Central City News, Woody Jenkins.
BEST SPORTS STORY: Division 1, The Advocate, Les East; Division 2, The Times, Jimmy Watson; Division 3, Daily Comet, Brent St. Germain; Division 4, Abbeville Meridional, William McDaniel; Division 5, St. Tammany News, Mike Pervel; Division 6, Tri-Parish Times, Casey Gisclair; Division 7, The West Side Journal, John Dupont; Division 8, Buwnkie Record, JJ Philips.
BEST REGULAR COLUMN: Division 1, The Advocate, Danny Heitman; Division 2, American Press, Pamela Seal; Division 3, Daily Comet, Michael Gorman; Division 4, Minden Press-Herald, Josh Beavers; Division 5, Southwest Daily News, Sulphur, Brian Trahan; Division 6, Tri-Parish Times, Shell Armstrong; Division 7, The West Side Journal, Richard “Sarge” Garwood; Division 8, Welsh Citizen, Bengt Lindell; Division 9, The Forum, Shreveport, Marty Carlson; Division 10, Central City News, Woody Jenkins.
BEST SPORTS COLUMN: Division 1, The Advocate, Scott Rabalais; Division 2, The Times, Roy Lang III; Division 3, The Courier, Chris Singleton; Division 4, Ruston Daily Leader, O.K. Davis; Division 5, L’Observateur, LaPlace, Ryan Arena; Division 6, Tri-Parish Times, Casey Gisclair; Division 7, The West Side Journal, John Dupont; Division 8, Bunkie Record, Garland Forman.
BEST OVERALL SPORTS COVERAGE: Division 1, The Advocate; Division 2, The Town Talk, Alexandria; Division 3, The Courier; Division 4, Abbeville Meridional; Division 5, Southwest Daily News; Division 6, Tri-Parish Times; Division 7, The West Side Journal; Division 8, Bunkie Record.
BEST LIFESTYLE COVERAGE: Division 1, The Advocate; Division 2, American Press; Division 3, The Courier; Division 4, Daily World; Division 5, The Livingston Parish News; Division 6, Teche News; Division 7, The West Side Journal; Division 8, Zachary Plainsman-News; Division 9, Acadiana LifeStyle, New Iberia; Division 10, Central City News.
BEST NEWS COVERAGE: Division 1, The Advocate; Division 2, The Daily Advertiser; Division 3, Daily Comet; Division 4, Minden Press-Herald; Division 5, L’Observateur; Division 6, St. Charles Herald-Guide, Boutte; Division 7, The West Side Journal; Division 8, Zachary Plainsman-News; Division 10, The Slidell Independent.
BEST CONTINUING COVERAGE OF A SINGLE NEWS EVENT: Division 1, The Advocate, Amy Wold, Skip Descant, Will Sentell, Richard Burgess, Koran Addo, Jason Brown, David Mitchell, Joe Macaluso, Katie Kennedy; Division 2, The Daily Advertiser, Eric Narcisse, Josh Parrott, Tina Macias; Division 3, The Courier, Nikki Buskey, Eric Heisig, Nate Monroe, John DeSantis, Naomi King, Robert Zullo; Division 4, Minden Press-Herald, staff; Division 5, Bogalusa Daily News, Richard Meek, Marcelle Hanemann, Lucy Parker; Division 6, Plaquemine Post South, Plaquemine, Deidre Cruse; Division 7, The West Side Journal, Aaron Williams; Division 8, Zachary Plainsman-News, Stacy Gill; Division 9, The Independent Weekly, Leslie Turk; Division 10, Central City News, Woody Jenkins.
BEST INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING: Division 1, The Advocate, Greg Garland; Division 2, The Daily Advertiser, Claire Taylor; Division 3, The Courier, Kathrine Schmidt; Division 4, Ruston Daily Leader, Elizabeth DeGrie, Laura Bond; Division 5, The Livingston Parish News, Alice Dowty; Division 6, Concordia Sentinel, Ferriday, Stanley Nelson; Division 7, The West Side Journal, Aaron Williams; Division 8, Bunkie Record, Garland Forman; Division 9, The Independent Weekly, Heather Miller; Division 10, Central City News, Woody Jenkins.
BEST STORY GENERATED BY PUBLIC NOTICE: Division 1, The Advocate, Bob Anderson; Division 2, The Daily Advertiser, Tina Macias; Division 4, Jennings Daily News, Allison Cryer; Division 5, Bossier Press-Tribune, Bossier City, David Specht Jr.; Division 6, The St. Bernard Voice, Arabi, William Dilella.
MOST EFFECTIVE USE OF GRAPHIC DESIGN ON A SINGLE PAGE: Division 1, The Advocate, Jay Martin; Division 2, American Press, Donna Price; Division 3, Daily Comet, Brandy Baugh; Division 4, Daily World, staff; Division 5, The Livingston Parish News, Paul Hatton; Division 6, New Orleans CityBusiness, Lisa Finnan; Division 7, The West Side Journal, Aaron Williams; Division 8, Donaldsonville Chief, Allison B. Hudson, Aanifa Leblanc; Division 9, The Forum, Daniel Wood; Division 10, Central City News, Woody Jenkins.
BEST HEADLINE: Division 1, The Advocate, Jay Martin; Division 2, American Press, Pamela Seal; Division 3, The Courier, Brent St. Germain; Division 4, Jennings Daily News, Sheila Smith; Division 5, Bossier Press-Tribune, Sean Green; Division 6, The Franklin Sun, Winnsboro, Katie Norwood; Division 7, The West Side Journal, Aaron Williams; Division 8, The St. Francisville Democrat, Hannah Catchings.
BEST NEWS PHOTO: Division 1, The Times-Picayune, New Orleans, Ted Jackson; Division 2, The News-Star, Ben Corda; Division 3, Daily Comet, Julia Rendleman; Division 4, Minden Press-Herald, Bonnie Culverhouse; Division 5, The Livingston Parish News, David Normand; Division 6, The Guardian-Journal, Homer, Jenni Williams; Division 7, The West Side Journal, Aaron Williams; Division 8, Gueydan Journal, Gueydan, Judy LeBlanc; Division 10, The Guardian, Fort Polk, Chuck Cannon.
BEST FEATURE PHOTO: Division 1, The Advocate, Travis Spradling; Division 2, The Town Talk, Melinda Martinez; Division 3, The Daily Iberian, Lee Ball; Division 4, Jennings Daily News, Sheila Smith; Division 5, Bossier Press-Tribune, Amanda Crane; Division 6, New Orleans CityBusiness, Tom Macom; Division 7, The West Side Journal, Aaron Williams; Division 8, Zachary Plainsman-News, Stacy Gill; Division 9, The Independent Weekly, Robin May; Division 10, Central City News, Woody Jenkins.
BEST SPORTS PHOTO: Division 1, The Advocate, Travis Spradling; Division 2, The Daily Advertiser, Leslie Westbrook; Division 3, The Daily Iberian, Lee Ball; Division 4, The Daily Review, Morgan City, Michelle Blanc; Division 5, Southwest Daily News, Rodrick Anderson; Division 6, Tri-Parish Times, Casey Gisclair; Division 7, The West Side Journal, Aaron Williams; Division 8, Amite Tangi Digest, Trish Thames.
BEST PHOTO PACKAGE: Division 1, The Times-Picayune, Ted Jackson; Division 2, American Press, Karen Wink; Division 3, The Courier, Julia Rendleman; Division 4, Minden Press-Herald, Sandra Samuel; Division 5, L’Observateur, Scott Schexnayder; Division 6, New Orleans CityBusiness, Frank Aymami; Division 7, The West Side Journal, Aaron Williams; Division 8, Zachary Plainsman-News, Stacy Gill; Division 9, The Independent Weekly, Robin May; Division 10, Central City News, Woody Jenkins.
BEST SPECIAL SECTION: Division 1, The Advocate; Division 2, The Daily Advertiser; Division 3, The Courier; Division 4, Ruston Daily Leader; Division 5, The Eunice News; Division 6, Tri-Parish Times; Division 7, The West Side Journal; Division 8, Gueydan Journal; Division 9, The Independent Weekly; Division 10, The Slidell Independent.
COMMUNITY SERVICE: Division A, The Daily Advertiser; Division B, L’Observateur; Division C, Tri-Parish Times.
GENERAL EXCELLENCE: Division 1, The Advocate; Division 2, The Daily Advertiser; Division 3, The Courier; Division 4, Ruston Daily Leader; Division 5, L’Observateur; Division 6, Tri-Parish Times; Division 7, The West Side Journal; Division 8, Welsh Citizen; Division 9, Thrive Magazine, Lake Charles; Division 10, The Slidell Independent.
STAFF-GENERATED - BLACK & WHITE AD: Division 1, The Advocate, Janet Fuller; Division 2, American Press, Earl Vital; Division 3, The Courier, Shaun Hebert; Division 4, Ruston Daily Leader, Robyn St. Andre, Will Avery; Division 5, The Livingston Parish News, Paul Hatton; Division 6, Gonzales Weekly Citizen, Gonzales, Penny Martinez; Division 7, The West Side Journal, Cole Williams; Division 8 , Zachary Plainsman-News, Kristi Lynch; Division 9, Gambit, New Orleans, Britt Benoit; Division 10, The Slidell Independent, Brittany Livaccari.
STAFF-GENERATED - COLOR AD: Division 1, The Advocate, Tim Elsea; Division 2, The Daily Advertiser, Meredith Disher; Division 3, The Courier, Shaun Hebert; Division 4, Abbeville Meridional, Hank Eleazar; Division 5, L’Observateur, Rhett Triche; Division 6, Teche News, Mark DeVillier; Division 7, The West Side Journal, Cole Williams; Division 8, Zachary Plainsman-News, Kristi Lynch; Division 9, Gambit, Lindsay Weiss; Division 10, Central City News, Terrie Palmer.
BEST AD CAMPAIGN: Division 1, The Times-Picayune, Allison Rupe; Division 2, American Press, ad production staff; Division 3, The Daily Iberian, staff; Division 4, Ruston Daily Leader, Adam Hohlt, Will Avery; Division 5, Bogalusa Daily News, Kim Gerald; Division 6, Tri-Parish Times, Alyson Showalter; Division 8, Amite Tangi Digest, Virgil Howell; Division 9, Gambit, Lindsay Weiss; Division 10, Central City News, Woody Jenkins.
IN-PAPER PROMOTION: Division 1, The Advocate, Linda Wunstel, Kayla Smith; Division 2, American Press, Maria Johnson; Division 3, The Courier, Shaun Hebert; Division 4, Jennings Daily News, staff; Division 5, The Livingston Parish News, Paul Hatton; Division 6, St. Charles Herald-Guide, Rodney Anouilh; Division 7, The West Side Journal, Cole Williams; Division 8, Amite Tangi Digest, Amite, Virgil Howell; Division 9, Gambit, Mark Waguespack; Division 10, Central City News, Woody Jenkins.
MULTIPLE ADVERTISER PAGE: Division 1, The Advocate, Tim Elsea; Division 2, American Press, staff; Division 3, The Daily Iberian, staff; Division 4, Jennings Daily News, staff; Division 5, Bossier Press-Tribune, staff; Division 6, The St. Bernard Voice, staff; Division 7, The West Side Journal, Cole Williams; Division 8, Gueydan Journal, Angie Longon, Pam Venissat; Division 9, The Independent Weekly, Nicole Minafi; Division 10, Central City News, Terrie Palmer.
ADVERTISING IDEA OR PROMOTION: Division 1, The Advocate, staff; Division 2, The Daily Advertiser, Blake Spivak, Melissa Hebert; Division 3, The Courier, staff; Division 4, Ruston Daily Leader, staff; Division 5, Bossier Press-Tribune, staff; Division 6, The Rayne Acadian-Tribune, Josie Henry, Chad Hebert; Division 8, Bunkie Record, Susan Decuir; Division 9, The Independent Weekly, staff; Division 10, Central City News, Woody Jenkins.
BEST CLASSIFIED SECTION OR PAGE: Division 1, The Times-Picayune; Division 2, The Town Talk; Division 3, The Courier; Division 4, The Crowley Post-Signal; Division 5, Bossier Press-Tribune; Division 6, St. Charles Herald-Guide; Division 7, The West Side Journal; Division 8, Zachary Plainsman-News; Division 10, Central City News.
BEST SERVICES AD - NON-RETAIL: Division 1, The Advocate, Tim Elsea; Division 2, The Daily Advertiser, staff; Division 3, The Daily Iberian, staff; Division 4, The Crowley Post-Signal, staff; Division 5, L’Observateur, Rhett Triche; Division 6, Teche News, Mark DeVillier; Division 7, The West Side Journal, Cole Williams; Division 8, The St. Francisville Democrat, Kristi Lynch; Division 9, The Independent Weekly, Nicole Minafi; Division 10, Central City News, Terrie Palmer.
BEST SUCCESS STORY OF AN AD: Division 1, The Advocate, Kayla Smith; Division 2, American Press, Monica Byrne; Division 4, Jennings Daily News, staff; Division 5, Bogalusa Daily News, Kim Gerald; Division 6, The Rayne Acadian-Tribune, Josie Henry; Division 8, Zachary Plainsman-News, Wendy Pate, Kristi Lynch; Division 9, The Independent Weekly, Nicole Minafi; Division 10, Central City News, Woody Jenkins.
BEST RETAILER AD: Division 1, The Times-Picayune, Scott Forsythe; Division 2, The Times, staff; Division 3, The Daily Iberian, staff; Division 4, Jennings Daily News, staff; Division 5, St. Tammany News, Sheila Allemand; Division 6, The Plaquemines Gazette, Belle Chasse, Brandi Rollo; Division 7, The West Side Journal, Cole Williams; Division 8, Zachary Plainsman-News, Kristi Lynch; Division 9, The Independent Weekly, Nicole Minafi; Division 10, Central City News, Terrie Palmer.
BEST NON-TRADITIONAL USE OF AD SPACE: Division 2, The Daily Advertiser, staff; Division 3, The Courier, Stacey Fabre; Division 4, The Crowley Post-Signal, staff; Division 5, Bogalusa Daily News, Kim Gerald; Division 6, The Rayne Acadian-Tribune, Josie Henry, Chad Hebert; Division 8, Zachary Plainsman-News, Kristi Lynch, Wendy Pate.
BEST OVERALL WEBSITE: Division A 1st Place American Press Lake Charles; 2nd Place The Advocate Baton Rouge; 3rd Place The Daily Advertiser Lafayette. Division B 1st Place The Courier Houma; 2nd Place The Independent Lafayette; 3rd Place The Courier Houma. Division C 1st Place Daily World Opelousas; 2nd Place Daily Comet Thibodaux; 3rd Place Southwest Daily News Sulphur.
BEST WEB PROJECT: Division B, The Courier; Division C, Daily Comet; B 2nd Place The Independent Lafayette; 3rd Place The Courier Houma. Division C 1st Place Daily Comet Thibodaux; 2nd Place St. Charles Herald-Guide Boutte; 3rd Place Daily Comet Thibodaux.
BEST MULTIMEDIA ELEMENT: Division A 1st Place American Press Lake Charles; 2nd Place American Press Lake Charles; 3rd Place American Press Lake Charles. Division B 1st Place The Courier Houma; 2nd Place The Courier Houma; 3rd Place The Courier Houma. Division C 1st Place Daily Comet Thibodaux; 2nd Place Daily Comet Thibodaux; 3rd Place Daily Comet Thibodaux; Honorable Mention Central City News Central
BEST ONLINE ADVERTISING-SINGLE STATIC AD: Division A, The News-Star.
BEST ONLINE ADVERTISING-SINGLE ANIMATED AD: Division A 1st Place The Courier Houma; 2nd Place The News-Star Monroe; 3rd Place The Courier Houma. Division B 1st Place The Independent Lafayette; 2nd Place The Independent Lafayette; Division C 1st Place L’Observateur LaPlace; 2nd Place L’Observateur LaPlace
BEST ONLINE ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN: Division A 1st Place The News-Star Monroe; 2nd Place The News-Star Monroe; 3rd Place The News-Star Monroe.
BEST ONLINE HOUSE AD OR CAMPAIGN: Division A, The News-Star.
INDIVIDUAL COMPETITION: Feature Writing, Division B, Aaron Williams, The West Side Journal; Division C, Cheryl Robichaux, Acadiana LifeStyle; Black & White Feature Photo, Division B, Aaron Williams, The West Side Journal; Color Feature Photo, Division B, Aaron Williams, The West Side Journal, Division C, Amanda McGraw, Central City News; Editorial Cartoon, Division C, Jake Nelson-Dooley, The Psychology Times, Baton Rouge.
BETTER STUDENT COMPETITION: Staff-Generated-Black & White Ad and Staff-Generated Color Ad, both The Lion’s Roar, Hammond, Michael Dinino; Best News Story or News Feature, Loyola Maroon, New Orleans, Karin Curley; Best Sports Story or Sports Feature, Loyola Maroon, Camara Thomas; Best Column, The Gramblinite, Grambling, Jeremy Smith; Best News Photo, The Lion’s Roar, Nick BeJeaux; Best Feature Photo, Xavier Herald, New Orleans, Alyssa Mercadel; Best Sports Photo, The Hawkeye, Monroe, Srdjan Marjanovic; Most Effective Use of Graphic Design on a Single Page, Xavier Herald, Stacey Windon and Hong Nguyen; General Excellence, Loyola Maroon.