The Catholic Courier and El Mensajero Católico recently received a total of 13 awards from the Catholic Press Association for work published during 2010.
The CPA, which represents more than 600 Catholic publications in the United States and Canada, presented the awards June 24 during its annual convention in Pittsburgh.
Catholic Courier awards
The Courier won the following awards:
Best Stand-Alone (Web) Site: The Courier‘s website, www.catholiccourier.com, won first place.
“This site is enormously comprehensive, featuring everything from an up-to-date online calendar to extensive archives," the judges wrote. "It achieves this feat without sacrificing ease of navigation or a clean, pleasing interface. This site sets a high bar not just for Catholic media but for all media.”
Individual Excellence, Photographer/Artist: Photo Editor Mike Crupi won second place for a portfolio of his work.
“These photos are so effective because they are able to capture and freeze very intense emotions," the judges wrote. "We move from devout prayer to excitement to sadness. When you see the picture you want to immediately read the story.”
Best Investigative News Writing: Staff Writer Amy Kotlarz won third place for her October 2010 story, “Cord-blood donor is limited in choice,” about what happened to money earmarked to create an umbilical-cord blood bank in Syracuse.
“Story showed good accountability and enterprise,” the judges wrote.
Best Portrait: Crupi won third place for his August 2010 portrait of Tony Liccione, a Knight of Columbus and sports promoter who was working to resurrect Rochester’s Hicock Belt.
“Layering of the old boxer’s image with Tony connects him to his quest," the judges wrote. "Nice lighting and expression on his face. A simple, yet balanced image.”
Best Online Multimedia Presentation of Visuals: Crupi took home a third-place award for his July 19, 2010, audio slideshow, “Immersion teaches valuable lessons,” about Rochester teens taking part in a weeklong Flower City Habitat for Humanity immersion experience.
“Impressive use of photography, multiple interviews and ambient sound to demonstrate the impact of student Habitat for Humanity service," the judges wrote.
El Mensajero awards
El Mensajero won the following awards:
Best News Writing, National/International Event: Staff Writer Annette Jiménez won first place for her series of articles on immigration.
“Complete, clear," the judges wrote. "Although it’s about a subject I know well, I learned more.”
Best News Writing, National/International Event: Jiménez also won second place in this category for her story on Latinos’ participation in the U.S. Census, "Urgen que cuenten a los latino" ("Hispanics urged to stand up and be counted"), published in February 2010.
“Explains the importance of the census to the community,” the judges wrote.
Best Feature Story: Jiménez’s November 2010 story on drug addiction, “Programas ayudan a vencer las adicciones” ("Programs help Latinos overcome substance abuse") won second place.
“It’s uncommon to see so honest an article in the Spanish-language Catholic newspapers," the judges wrote. "Well done.”
Best In-Depth Analysis: Jiménez won first place for a July 2010 series of stories about programs that help youths, "Iniciativa ayuda a los jóvenes con problemas de salud mental" ("Initiative helps youths with mental-health issues") and "Mentor transforma la vida de antiguo pandillero" (Mentor transformed life of former gang member").
“Annette Jiménez has the gift of storytelling — leading the reader without affectation,” the judges wrote.
Best In-Depth Analysis: Jiménez also won second place in this category for her October and November 2010 stories on hunger, "Programa combate el hambre entre los niños" (Programs seek to combat childhood hunger") and "Grupo ayuda a los hambrientos ("Group helps the hungry").
"From the beginning of the article until the end, the writer explains everything with clarity and tenderness toward the people she interviews,” the judges said.
Best Lead Article: Jiménez won third place for August 2010’s “Crean programas de aprender inglés” ("Opportunities created for English-language learners").
“El Mensajero Católico’s article on learning English is an issue that is not only interesting but important,” the judges wrote.
Individual Excellence, Writer/Editor: Jiménez won first place for a portfolio of her work.
“Excellent," the judges wrote. "Always a pleasure to read. Reporter puts a lot of effort into finding the right people to interview.”
General Excellence: El Mensajero won first place.
“El Mensajero Católico, year after year, has interesting content, the time and very well written,” the judges wrote.
Other El Mensajero awards
In April, El Mensajero won two awards from the New York Press Association for work published during 2010.
The NYPA, a trade organization representing the state’s nondaily community newspapers, presented the awards April 8-9 during its annual convention in Saratoga Springs. The Catholic Courier was not entered in this competition.
El Mensajero won the following awards:
News Story (Division 2, 5,001-9,000 circulation): First place went to Annette Jiménez for her story "Programas ayudan a los latinos a vencer las adicciones de substancias" ("Programs help Latinos overcome substance abuse"), which was published in November.
"This story was compelling, moving, well-reported and well-written — all reasons for a 1st place (nod)," the judges wrote. "Tackling this subject matter from the eyes of those most impacted makes it a must read. A real gem among so many quality entries."
Best Newspaper Web Site (all circulation divisions): El Mensajero‘s website received second place among all competing nondaily newspapers in the state.
"The site is beautifully straight forward and simply designed," the judges wrote. "Visitors know exactly where to go to find what they want and the size of the main picture appropriately captures our attention. The dimming effect on photo slideshows is a nice touch."
