Recognized for reporting, advertising
The Highlands Current won 22 awards in the annual editorial and advertising contest sponsored by the National Newspaper Association.
The awards were announced on June 30. The contest received 1,561 entries published in 2021 from 40 states. The judges were current, retired or former community newspaper editors and publishers and journalism professors. The Current has won 93 NNA citations since 2016.
In addition, Chip Rowe was one of 12 finalists on July 23 among 91 entries in a national editorial-writing contest sponsored by the International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors for “The Meeting Before the Meeting,” which described a state law that allows members of an elected body such as the Putnam County Legislature to meet in caucus and discuss any topic, with any invited participants, even if the gathering constitutes a quorum.
In the NNA contest, Brian PJ Cronin won the Community Service Award among all papers for his Hunger in the Highlands series. He also won first place for environmental reporting among smaller papers for his Sundown at Indian Point series and third place for “The Return of the Tree Army,” a story about the legacy of the Civilian Conservation Corps in the Hudson Valley.
Among mid-sized weeklies, Operation Infrastructure won first place for best localized national story and first place for investigative series.
Teresa Lagerman was recognized with a first place award for the best reader-generated campaign among weekly papers for the Halloween Costume Contest.
Among papers of all sizes, Ross Corsair won second place for video journalism for “A Fun Afternoon at Winter Hill” and Pierce Strudler won second place for informational graphic for the election guide, “Here Are Your Choices.”
Among all mid-sized papers, Cronin won second place for columns for “A Park by Any Other Name,” about efforts to rename the local Donald J. Trump State Park. Rowe finished third in the category for “The Meeting Before the Meeting,” which also took third in the Freedom of Information category among papers of all sizes.
Among mid-sized weeklies, The Current received third place for general excellence; Skip Pearlman won second place for his sports photo of a baseball player sliding into third; Corsair won second place for his feature photo of a concerned little brother; and Michael Turton won third place for his feature profile of a Dutchess County woman who survived Hiroshima.
Also among mid-sized weeklies, Turton and Cronin won second place for business stories for Future Homes; and Turton won second place for reporting on local government for, “POOF! A Village Could Disappear,” his story about a vote that determined the future of Highlands Falls.
In the advertising categories, among all small papers, Strudler won first place for multiple advertiser section for a Valentine’s Day feature, “Love is in the Air”; The Current won first place for newspaper promotion for its membership campaign; and Strudler took second place for restaurant ad.
Among small weeklies, Lagerman was recognized for the best advertising idea for Ice Cream Passport and Strudler took second place for small ads.
