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2018 Page One Awards Honor great journalism in Minnesota

by Chris Snowbeck on June 15, 2018 in Awards, News with No comments

 

Scholarship winner Nick Kelly at the Page One Awards

Local journalists gathered to celebrate the best in reporting, photography, broadcast, and digital production Thursday night at the 2018 Minnesota SPJ Page One Awards.

 

Jennifer Bjorhus, an investigative reporter for the Star Tribune, took home Journalist of the Year honors while Sam Brodey, the Washington correspondent for MinnPost, was named Young Journalist of the Year. Chris Serres of the Star Tribune received the Story of the Year award for his “Left to Suffer” series on the abuse of residents in senior homes across Minnesota.

 

In other news, Ken Goulart, Larry Gubbe, Tom Funk, Alan Kildow, Sonya Braunschweig and other members of a citizens group in Victoria, Minn., received the 2018 Peter S. Popovich Award, which is given to a person or organization that exemplifies the fight for First Amendment rights. Over the span of five years, the group had pushed their City Council for access to basic public records like council meeting minutes and email communications, and later the group was victorious in court when several council members were found to have violated the state’s Open Meeting Law.

 

The Page One Awards honor the best in Minnesota journalism. About 150 journalists working in print, TV, radio and online attended the event, which was held at the Town & Country Club in St. Paul. The entries for this year’s awards were judged by members of the Florida pro chapter of SPJ.

 

Christopher Ingraham, a Washington Post reporter who became infamous in Minnesota after publishing a report that ranked Red Lake County, Minn., last in the nation in terms of “natural amenities,” gave the keynote address. Ingraham, who described himself as a “born again Minnesotan” after he moved his family to Red Lake, talked about his new life in rural Minnesota as well as the importance of data especially in a world where some are suspicious of media and “fake news.” “The challenge we face is that we know there are a lot of misconceptions out there,” he said. Visual data such as charts and other graphics can often be more convincing than just plain text, Ingraham said.

 

Minnesota SPJ also announced the winner of a $2,500 scholarship — Nick Kelly, a sophomore at the University of Missouri-Columbia who has interned at the St. Paul Pioneer Press, the Star Tribune, ESPN Radio, the Rochester Post Bulletin and several other outlets. He currently has an internship with The Athletic.

 

Minnesota SPJ President Jenna Ross awarded the President’s Award to treasurer Christopher Snowbeck highlighting his meticulous financial bookkeeping and invaluable contributions to the chapter.

 

The awards ceremony was hosted by Star Tribune metro columnist Jennifer Brooks.

 

The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), the oldest and largest organization of journalists in the U.S., was founded as Sigma Delta Chi in 1909.  The Minnesota Chapter, which has about 100 members, was founded in 1956.

 

If you would like to order duplicate awards or have any awards-related questions, please contact Minnesota SPJ at minnesota.spj@gmail.com.

 

The complete winner’s list can be viewed here. Check out a gallery capturing the night’s speeches, music and socializing. 

Emcee Jennifer Brooks crafted a mascot for the evening.

2018 Page One Awards in Photography

by Chris Snowbeck on June 15, 2018 in Awards, News with No comments

 

MNSPJ congratulates all the winners recognized Thursday night at the annual Page One Awards!  Here’s a list of winners for excellence in photography.

 

Best News Photography

First Place, Evan Frost, Chris Juhn, Courtney Perry, MPR News

Judge’s comment

“The MPR team’s news photography displayed a wide range of effective images, which showed both the human impact of major news stories and gave the viewer a sense of what makes local landscapes and communities unique.”

 

Second Place, Richard Tsong-Taatarii, Star Tribune

Third Place, Jean Pieri, St. Paul Pioneer Press

 

Best Feature Photography

First Place, Brian Peterson, Star Tribune

 

Second Place, Maria Cardona, Evan Frost, MPR News 

Third Place, Nate Ryan, The Current /Minnesota Public Radio

                                                           

Best Portrait Photography Newspaper – 50,000+ circulation  

First Place, Jeff Wheeler, Star Tribune

“Portraits: Immigrants and food”

Judge’s comment

“The most whimsical of a series of portraits of immigrants and food. Nicely done.”

 

Second Place, Shelly Mosman, City Pages “Charlie Parr”

Third Place, Bill Klotz, Finance-Commerce “Mohammed Lowall”

 

Best Sports Photography Newspaper – 50,000+ circulation

First Place, Caroline Yang, Monika Lawrence and Evan Frost, MPR

Judge’s comment

“Nice look at a different story. Several nice pictures here!”

 

Second Place, Liz Flores, Star Tribune

Third Place, Carlos Gonzalez, Star Tribune

 

 

 

 

Join us for the MNSPJ Page One Awards

by Jenna Ross on May 11, 2018 in Awards, News with Comments Off on Join us for the MNSPJ Page One Awards

Tickets are available now for the 2018 Page One Awards, which will celebrate the best in Minnesota journalism.

Christopher Ingraham, a Washington Post reporter with an affinity for odd, off-the-beaten-path datasets, will be the keynote speaker. He expertly uses data to break down knotty topics, including gun policy.

In 2015, Chris attained upper Midwestern notoriety after reporting on a USDA report that ranked Red Lake County, Minnesota dead last in the nation for “natural amenities.” He subsequently visited the county at the invite of a local businessman, fell in love with the region, and moved there with his family the following year. He’s working on a book about the experience.

The Page One Awards will recognize the state’s top journalists, with awards for investigative reporting, beat reporting and story of the year. 

Buy tickets to the banquet here. 

Date: Thursday, June 14

Location: Town & Country Club
Town & Country Club
(300 Mississippi River Blvd. N., St. Paul, Minn.)

Time:
Reception begins at 5:30 p.m.
Dinner served at 7:00 p.m.

Please RSVP by 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, June 7.

PAGE ONE AWARDS NOW ACCEPTING ENTRIES: DEADLINE 2/23!

by Jonathan Kealing on January 24, 2018 in Awards with Comments Off on PAGE ONE AWARDS NOW ACCEPTING ENTRIES: DEADLINE 2/23!

The Minnesota Professional Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists (MN SPJ) recognizes the best in Minnesota journalism each year with its annual Page One Awards.

As always, a few minor changes have been made to this year’s contest. In particular, we’ve made revisions to certain categories in the Newspaper division in response to feedback from our members. The new categories are:

  1. A division of the Enterprise/In-Depth category into single story and series categories, to better showcase the best in both types of work.
  2. A revision to the Arts Criticism/Review category (new last year) to allow an individual journalist to be judged on the strength of a body of work, rather than a single story. Journalists can now enter up to three examples of their work. This change has been applied in both the Newspaper and Online divisions.
  3. A division of the Best Sports Story category to two new categories: Best Sports News Story and Best Sports Feature Story, to allow us to celebrate more of the great sports journalism done in Minnesota.

This year, MNSPJ has elected to hold the price of a contest entry steady at $22 — the same as last year.

SPJ_Vertical_Web

Journalists working for all print, broadcast and online news outlets in Minnesota (or news outlets in neighboring states that cover Minnesota) are eligible to enter. All work published or broadcast during the 2017 calendar year is eligible. Entries must be submitted by Friday, February 23. 

Contest winners will be honored at MN SPJ’s Page One Banquet, an annual spring event celebrating excellence in Minnesota journalism. The date and location for the banquet will be announced later.

Important Links:

Please contact MN SPJ with any questions: minnesota.spj@gmail.com

2018 PAGE ONE AWARDS: CONTEST CATEGORIES

by Jonathan Kealing on January 24, 2018 in Awards with Comments Off on 2018 PAGE ONE AWARDS: CONTEST CATEGORIES

1. NEWSPAPER

a. Spot News (One or more stories covering a single spot news event)

b. Meeting/Planned news event (One or more stories covering a single news event that was known in advance.)

c. Feature (A single feature story)

d. Enterprise/In-Depth (A single story) (One story that reflects a reporter’s ingenuity, use of sources or special research that help the reader understand a situation beyond information provided in a typical news story)

e. Enterprise/In-Depth (Series ) (Multiple stories that reflect a reporter’s ingenuity, use of sources or special research that help the reader understand a situation beyond information provided in a typical news story)

f. Investigative (One or more stories a single topic or news event containing information not readily available to the news media or public and obtained through reporter initiative)

g. Business Story (A single news story or feature focusing on business-related news)

h. Sports News Story (A single story on sports-related news)

i. Sports Feature Story (A single feature story on a sports-related topic)

j. Arts & Entertainment Story (A single news story or feature focusing on arts & entertainment-related news)

k. Arts Criticism/Review (One to three stories that illustrate a journalist’s competence in criticizing or reviewing performance, musical groups, restaurants or other similar entities/events)

l. Column (A single column written for any section including but not limited to general interest, business or sports)

m. Editorial (A single editorial)

n. Graphics/Art and illustration (Original artwork, graphs, diagrams, maps or other visual elements that illustrate a story)

o. Page Design (A single page design: taking into account layout and page composition, use of headlines, art, graphics etc.)

p. Headlines (A collection of up to three (3) headlines, submitted along with the accompanying stories)

q. Best issue (Based on reporting, writing, photography, graphics/illustration, layout, copyhandling, etc.)

2. MAGAZINE

a. Best Profile Story (A single profile story)

b. Best Feature Story (A single feature story)

c. Best Department (A magazine component appearing under the same heading and possibly, but not always, written by different writers); send 3 unique examples

d. Best Column (A magazine component appearing under the same heading and always written by the same author); send 3 unique examples

e. Best Cover (A single magazine cover)

f. Best Page Design (A full story or feature layout, single page, two-page or double-truck design)

g. Graphics/Art and illustration (Original artwork, graphs, diagrams, maps or other visual elements that illustrate a story)

h. Best issue (Based on writing, photography, graphics/illustration, layout)

3. TELEVISION

a. Spot/Breaking news (coverage of an unscheduled event broadcast within 24 hours; may be a single story or compilation of coverage on a single event)

b. Hard News report (best coverage of a news-related topic; may include in-depth, planned coverage of a single event, or enterprise reporting)

c. Feature (single story done for some other factor than timeliness–may include profile, human interest, or trend stories)

d. Special Project/In-Depth series (a single report or series of reports going in-depth on a particular subject, helping the viewer understand a situation beyond information in a typical news story)

e. Investigative (One or more stories containing information not readily available to the news media or public and obtained through reporter initiative)

f. Newscast (One regularly-scheduled newscast airing on any day in the contest year. The entry should represent the station’s best work in news content, execution, and overall presentation)

g. Meeting/Planned Event feature (One or more stories covering a single news event that was known in advance.)

4. RADIO

a. Spot/Breaking news (coverage of an unscheduled event broadcast within 24 hours; may be a single story or compilation of coverage on a single event)

b. Hard News report (best coverage of a news-related topic; may include in-depth, planned coverage of a single event, or enterprise reporting)

c. Feature (single story done for some other factor than timeliness–may include profile, human interest, or trend stories)

d. Special Project/In-Depth series (a single report or series of reports going in-depth on a particular subject, helping the viewer understand a situation beyond information in a typical news story)

e. Investigative (One or more stories containing information not readily available to the news media or public and obtained through reporter initiative)

f. Newscast (One regularly-scheduled newscast airing on any day in the contest year. The entry should represent the station’s best work in news content, execution, and overall presentation)

g. Meeting/Planned Event feature (One or more stories covering a single news event that was known in advance.)

5. ONLINE

a. Best Website (Best use of a website for providing news to an online audience. Judges will look at areas such as ease of navigation, creative design concepts, good organization and degree to which online resources enhance reporting.)

b. Best single news story (Best online coverage of a single news story or event)

c. Best continuing coverage (Two or more online reports demonstrating ongoing coverage of a news event; including original or web-only content)

d. Arts & Entertainment. (Single arts and entertainment-themed feature)

e. Arts Criticism/Review (One to three stories that illustrate a journalist’s competence in criticizing or reviewing performance, musical groups, restaurants or other similar entities/events)

f. Best use of multimedia (Demonstrates outstanding use of photos, galleries, video, and/or audio to enhance original story)

g. Best social media account – Individual (For a social media account on any platform run by one journalist that best demonstrates an understanding of audience, an appreciation for the strengths and weaknesses of the platform, while showing a commitment to innovation and an adherence to SPJ’s Code of Ethics)

h. Best social media account – Institutional (For a social media account run by multiple journalists that best demonstrates an understanding of audience, an appreciation for the strengths and weaknesses of the platform, while showing a commitment to innovation and an adherence to SPJ’s Code of Ethics)

i. Best news video (Single video, or series of videos on the same subject, produced to appear online-only)

j. Best newsroom blog (submit URL for blog, judged on overall excellence in news coverage, affiliated with a newspaper, magazine, TV or radio station)

k. Best independent news blog (submit URL for blog, judged on overall excellence in news coverage, not affiliated with a newspaper, magazine, TV or radio station)

l. Meeting/Planned Event Feature (One or more stories covering a single news event that was known in advance.)

6. PHOTOGRAPHY

a. Best News Photography (Best use of photography in news stories. Submit a collection of up to three (3) news photos.)

b. Best Feature Photography (Best use of photography in feature stories. Submit a collection of up to three (3) feature photos.)

c. Best Portrait Photography (Best use of portrait photography. Submit a collection of up to three (3) portrait photos.)

d. Best Sports Photography (Best use of photography in sports stories. Submit a collection of up to three (3) sports photos.)

7. SPECIAL AWARDS

a. Young Journalist of the Year (Award given to outstanding journalist in any medium with less than 10 years experience; submit three examples of work and letter of nomination)

b. Journalist of the Year (Award given to outstanding journalist in any medium with 10 or more years of experience; submit three examples of work and letter of nomination)

c. Story of the Year (Award for general excellence in any medium, covering a single story or news event submit up to three examples of work and letter of nomination)

d. Best Use of Public Records (Award for excellence in any medium covering a story or news event where use of public records played a role in getting and telling the story; submit up three examples of work and a narrative letter explaining work and its use of public records)

e. Best Beat Reporting (Award recognizing an enterprising reporter in any medium who follows a single subject or topic throughout the year. Entries should include three examples of reporting and a narrative letter explaining any other relevant facts a judge may use to determine the state’s top beat reporter.)

Entry Tiers

  • Newspaper [50,000+ circulation]
  • Newspaper [LESS than 50,000 circulation]
  • Magazine
  • Television [50+ newsroom employees]
  • Television [Fewer than 50 newsroom employees]
  • Radio
  • Online
  • Photography [All photo entries will be judged against each other regardless of publication size]

CLICK HERE to access the contest submission form

Page One Awards: Deadline extended to 3/5

by Jonathan Kealing on February 27, 2017 in Awards with Comments Off on Page One Awards: Deadline extended to 3/5

We’ve heard from several of you that you could have used just a few more minutes to get those last Page One Award entries in — and we’re happy to oblige.

We’re extending the deadline to March 5 at 5 p.m. CT.

Any entries submitted between now and then will be judged against the full set of entries, so don’t delay.

Journalists working for all print, broadcast and online news outlets in Minnesota (or news outlets in neighboring states that cover Minnesota) are eligible to enter. All work published or broadcast during the 2016 calendar year is eligible. The fee is $22 per entry.

Contest winners will be honored at MN SPJ’s Page One Banquet, an annual spring event celebrating excellence in Minnesota journalism. The date and location for the banquet will be announced later.

Important Links:

Please contact MN SPJ with any questions: minnesota.spj@gmail.com

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