Islander awarded at FPA convent
The Islander newspaper and its staff brought eight awards home from Orlando and the Florida Press Association convention June 5-6.
The organization of weekly community newspapers held its convention in conjunction with daily papers and their Florida Society of Newspaper Editors, as well as the Florida Press Service, First Amendment Foundation and Florida Newspapers in Education.
The weekly awards were chosen from 1,553 entries from 87 newspapers and, the speaker noted, at least 64 papers won at least one award.
The event launched on Thursday with a keynote address from Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain and an attentive audience of Florida newspaper publishers, editors and reporters, as well as the traveling press.
Combined seminars and meetings for the attendees focused on the outlook for newspapers and the struggle daily papers face in maintaining news coverage in the face of significant income/profit losses.
The event is highlighted each year by awards from both organizations to their respective members. For weekly newspapers, the 2007 Better Weekly Newspaper Awards were presented at dinner Friday with an accompanying video and a tabloid newspaper depicting submissions that earned first-place prizes.
The Islander brought home eight awards, including two first-place prizes and one sentimental second-place award for a submission to the humorous column category and written by the late Don Maloney. The judges noted “very funny - particularly the idea to have everyone call you fatso.” They added, “Congrats, Fatso,” to their comments.
Reporter/photographer Lisa Neff garnered two first place trophies for The Islander, one for a spot news photo, taken of a vehicle in the water following a fatal accident at the Anna Maria Island Bridge, the other for outdoor writing.
Judges commented on the photo: “You have the perfect location to take this picture. What makes it so nice is the officer snapping a pic along with the guys figuring out how to tow it. Great job!”
Neff’s prize story was about two young Islanders who started up a bait-selling business, M&M Bait. The judges commented, “Clever story, told in an appropriately light-hearted tone. Good kicker.”
Other awards included second place for Web site development, third place for an editorial on the passing of Passage Key by publisher Bonner Joy, and an honorable mention in the news story category for Rick Catlin’s story “Tax deferment draws ire of mortgage holder.” The judges said of Catlin’s effort, “good story with many good quotes.”
Lisa Neff received honorable mention for her series of photos from The Islander’s annual event honoring military veterans, including members of the newspapers feature Greatest Generation, and the newspaper received honorable mention in the community service category for the same event. Judges commented that the “event the newspaper organized sounds moving and meaningful to the community.” |
