Record wins 33 statewide awards

Marion County Record has won 33 statewide awards for 2026, Kansas Press Association announced this week.

Included are 17 first-place awards for:

• Best investigative reporting for a story uncovering the troubled past of a Peabody police officer, which a judge wrote was “by far the best entry in this category, well reported and well written on a topic that would resonate in any community.”
• Best news story for coverage of murky water in a rural water district, which a judge termed “great coverage of a crucially important topic.”
• Best series of stories for continuing coverage of the aftermath of a now-disavowed newsroom raid, which a judge wrote was “hands down winner!”
• Best story originating from a public notice for a story about how the sheriff avoided being listed along with other delinquent taxpayers.
• Best editorial pages, which a judge wrote included “good representation by local letter writers.”
• Best story / photo combination about motorcycles racing in Florence, which a judge termed “a creative article and wonderful photos.”
• Best sports feature profiling Marion graduate Ron Oelschlager, which a judge termed “an interesting story” that “flowed well and included good details, quotes, and comparisons.”
• Best outdoor story about fishing at the county lake’s heated dock, which a judge termed: “Outstanding. Great writing. Captivating story. Well done.”
• Best environmental story about resolving problems with toxic blue-green algae, about which a judge wrote: “Nice overall story…. I appreciate the details and comprehensive understanding of steps taken to improve the water.”
• Best youth story about a Tampa teen rapper, about which a judge wrote: “Great use of imagery and design for the feature. I feel drawn into your storytelling here. Always love a feature that makes me laugh.”
• Best environmental portrait for a photo accompanying the teen rapper story, which a judge said had “great display of emotion and wonderful use of light.” It tied for first place with a cover photo from one of the Record’s Explore sections, which judges termed “so amazing . . . it looks like a canned copy photo, it is so good.”
• Best agricultural story about calving in winter.
• Best headline writing, which a judge wrote had “good use of not just puns but also metaphors.”
• Best photo package for photos of Halloween decorations, about which a judge wrote: “I love the playfulness of these photos.”
• Best education advertisement for Centre’s online learning program, which a judge called a “great layout, simple and to the point.”
• Best health care advertisement for the Marion County Health Fair.

Second-place awards

The Record placed second statewide for:

• Local business story about a gardening store in Florence, which a judge wrote “really captivated me” by capturing an “interesting and quirky story without it coming across as poking fun.”
• Story / photo combination for coverage of a fatal head-on crash near Lost Springs.
• Editorial writing, which a judge said represented “a nice mix of humor and solid points, well written.”
• Column writing, about which a judge wrote: “As a package, these columns are great at showing the public why communities need local news. You do an excellent job explaining our watchdog role and in holding your community accountable. Strong writing and organization, nice description.”
• Overall news and writing excellence, about which a judge wrote: “A lot of things to like with this entry.”
• Infographic explaining Internet bandwidth, which a judge wrote “does a nice job organizing a lot of information in a way that is approachable for readers” and “helps make a technical topic feel much more understandable.”
• Community event advertisement for Chingawassa Days.
• Automotive advertisement for Hillsboro Ford.
• House ad for Record subscriptions.

Third-place awards

The Record placed third statewide for:

• Government / political story for coverage of City of Marion budgeting, about which a judge wrote: “Making a budget story interesting and understandable is never easy, but this one gets high marks for the effort. It’s clear this city could do better in its management of taxpayer dollars.”
• Use of photos, about which a judge wrote: “Great use of action shots! Color and light were great too!”
• Front pages, about which a judge commented “make great use of color.”
• Agricultural ad about National Agriculture Day.
• Community event ad about Peabody’s FourthFest, which a judge termed “just absolutely so aesthetically pleasing.”
• Entertainment ad about Town & Country Café’s Thanksgiving meal in Florence.

Individual current and former staff members honored include Finn Hartnett, Nicholas Kimball, Eric Meyer, Debra Steele, and Phyllis Zorn. Zorn is now retired. Hartnett works for The New Republic magazine.

The Record competes in the Kansas Press Association competition against print and online dailies and weeklies in the fourth of seven classes delineated by circulation.

Awards were for content published in 2025 and will be presented June 4 and 5 at a convention in Hutchinson.