Record again honored for state’s best news, investigations
Marion County Record won a near-record 39 awards, including best overall news and writing, in statewide contest results released last week.
The Record has placed first in the state in overall news and writing for four of the past five years. The one year it didn’t win, staffers ran out of time to submit an entry in that category.
For the second year in a row, the Record swept 1st and 2nd place statewide in investigative reporting.
Since 2000, the Record has received three 1st, five 2nd, and three 3rd place awards in that category.
The Record repeated as 1st place winner for best news story and for best series of stories.
It also placed 1st for best front page, for which it received two 1st place awards, a 2nd, and a 3rd in the five previous years.
The Record won 1st place for best editorial writing — its sixth award in that category (two 1st, one 2nd, and three 3rd) in six years — and 1st place for best column writing (its fourth award in six years).
The Record’s editorial page was rated best in the state, and the Record won 1st for best health story, for best religion story, for best story originating from a public notice, and for overall design and layout excellence (its fifth consecutive award when entering that category).
Since 2000, the Record has won 146 statewide awards, competing against mid-size newspapers — some weeklies but mostly dailies — in contests sponsored by Kansas Press Association and judged by contest winners from other states.
A complete list of this year’s winners along with judges’ comments follows:
1ST PLACE
Best front page — Sample issues from three widely separated weeks. “Strong, eye-catching headlines paired with good art make the Marion County Record the winner. ‘All Mucked Up’ and ‘Dog Gone?’ were great and the turtle package shows that even, the simplest of ideas can yield outsized results if handled well.”
Best story originating from a public notice — “Unpaid taxes soar 43% to record levels,” by Eric Meyer. “Good job holding individuals to account. Info from your delinquent notice was used and put into use to hold these taxpayers accountable.”
Column writing — Three editorial columns by Eric Meyer. No comments recorded.
Design and layout excellence — Sample issues from three widely separated weeks. “It’s not unusual for papers with good fronts to let things slip inside. That’s not the case here where the same approach to clean design, nice art, and strong headlines exists.”
Editorial pages — Sample issues from three widely separated weeks. “Eric Meyer’s editorials help this entry stand out from the field. The pages are mostly well designed and overall have the strongest content of the bunch. Good work.”
Editorial writing — Three editorials by Eric Meyer. “All three had compelling arguments. The disappearing city clerk should never have been hired, the prosecutor extorting a higher salary, and the City of Marion going from 3 commissioners to 5 council members. You made me think!”
Health story — “Daughter trades her kidney for one dad needs,” by Rowena Plett. “The headline was a head-scratcher when I first read it. Wait, that can’t be right. How do you trade kidneys? This story tells us how paired organ donation works through one family’s life-changing experience. It must’ve enlightened and informed many other readers as it did me.”
Investigative story — “Promoted to clerk, felon vanishes” and follow-up stories by Phyllis Zorn, regarding former Commerce Department employee Jonathan Clayton, whose body later was found near Newton in the wreckage of a truck “Excellent coverage of an ongoing story. Well researched, well told. Great job of reaching back with each story to keep new readers apprised.”
News and writing excellence — Sample issues from three widely separated weeks. “There’s a good variety of coverage and noticeable efforts to provide high-quality journalism. Writing style flows well, makes for good storytelling.”
News story — “Fire and Ice,” by Phyllis Zorn, an account of a heroic firefighting effort and a rescue in a house fire amid frigid, snowy weather in Lincolnville. “Informative and timely.”
Religion story — “Czech it out,” by Finn Hartnett, who was part of the staff for only four months, detailing Father Emil Kapaun’s role in the history of Pilsen. “Easily the best in the class, great reporting.”
Series — “Seized but not silenced, continuing coverage,” by Eric Meyer, Phyllis Zorn, and others. “ ‘Paper cleared; ex-chief faces felony charge’ is a headline everyone in the newspaper business is happy to see. It’s clear that the Aug. 11, 2023, now disavowed law enforcement raid on the newspaper office and two homes will have consequences for years to come. This newspaper has captured the hearts of journalists everywhere.”
2ND PLACE
Best environmental portrait — “Milking life for all its worth,” by Cheri Bentz, featuring kittens nursing inside a milk can. “Interesting shot from a unique perspective.”
Best story originating from a public notice — “Property tax increases could be sizeable,” by Eric Meyer about the impact of increased assessments on property tax bills. “Your reporter seems to know the rules better than the officials. Nice job conveying the county’s responsibility during a tax increase.”
Feature story — “Dog gone?” by Finn Hartnett. “Nice job featurizing a news story on city laws. What made this entry stand out was the anecdote that began the story. Good job finding the woman who moved in with her parents. The anecdote made the story very relatable. Solid.”
Headline writing — Three samples by Eric Meyer. No comments recorded.
Investigative story — “New Peabody cop named in brutality suit,” by Phyllis Zorn. “Very nice job. Nice use of sources.”
Photo package — “Snap it up, slow poke!” by Nicholas Kimball, showing turtles in Florence. “Really compelling photos on what might have been a slow news day since a turtle was involved. Great job getting eye to eye with the big ol’ snapping turtle!”
Special section — Explore Marion County, with stories and photos by Finn Hartnett and others. “Colorful, full of information and features, Great ads, too.”
Spot news photography — “All mucked up,” by Nicholas Kimball, depicting a quagmire of a county road. “Great illustration with this spot news coverage. Good job keeping readers informed.”
Youth story — “Street smarts: Kids had played there for years, but council and police may change that,” by Finn Hartnett about Peabody’s The Hub youth center. No comments recorded.
3rd Place
Best environmental portrait — “Who are you?” by Cheri Bentz, a portrait of an owl. “Beautiful.”
Education story — “Young scholars compete in battles of wits,” by Finn Hartnett about Marion’s scholars bowl team. “The lead here is an instant attention-grabber, flowing incredibly well into a great story. There are some things I would change, like a couple of questions outside of the scholar bowl material answered by quotes that can be reworked, but this is a really strong piece with effective writing, nonetheless.”
Local business story — “Faith, flavor propel mustard company,” by Finn Hartnett about Grannie’s Homemade Mustard. “Faith and family and honey bears. Hard combination to beat! Super story.”
Youth story — “Places to go but no way to get there,” by Phyllis Zorn about Florence 18-year-old Taisha Sanchez’s need for a specialized van. No comments recorded.
ADVERTISING AWARDS
Advertising awards are judged in two divisions only — small and large. For this portion of the contest, the Record is classified as being in the large division, competing against the biggest newspapers in the state.
Best agricultural ad — 2nd place to Eric Meyer and Debra Steele for “Our patients are all smiles,” an Animal Health Center ad. “Great choice of photo! Great placement of logos as well. The fonts are clear and easy to read. Great job!”
Best community event ad — 3rd place to Eric Meyer and Debra Steele for “Chingawassa Days.” “Very well put together. Fonts, colors, and photos go well together.”
Best furniture ad — 2nd place to Eric Meyer and Debra Steele for “Have a very Merry Christmas” for AhaSpas. “Good use of humor for branding ad.”
Best hardware ad — 2nd place to Eric Meyer and Debra Steele for “Ladies night,” a Marion County Ace Hardware ad. “Nice illustration to get the ladies’ attention for ladies night promotion.”
Best health care ad — 2nd place to Eric Meyer and Debra Steele for “Come home,” a Parkside Homes ad. “Great use of pictures; both versions of the ad look inviting and very professional.” Also, 3rd place for “Doctors Day” for St. Luke Hospital. “The picture really makes this one, and the way that the text matches with it.”
Best house ad — 2nd place to Eric Meyer for “Two days early,” about early printing of Christmas and New Year’s issues. “Eye-catching ad. Artwork is aesthetically pleasing and ties in nicely to the messaging.”
Best professional service ad — 2nd place to Eric Meyer and Debra Steele for “Invest in you,” a Great Plains Federal Credit Union ad. “Eye-appealing and attractive professional service ad. Money will always pull clients in for an advertiser!”
Best use of color — 2nd and 3rd place to Eric Meyer and Debra Steel for “Pre-Fourth barbecue” and “Trusted Care,” both for Salem Home. “Good color use. Loved the fireworks color interspersed with the words. The apron, shoes and grill is a great look in this ad, alternating against the darker blue background.” Also, “Clean use of color, eye-appealing yet stylish.”
Most adaptable promotion — 1st place to Eric Meyer, Debra Steele, and Cheri Bentz for 12 monthly community service pages. “A great way to give advertisers a chance to promote beneficial messages for the community.”