2024 Golden Press Card: Newspapers (Small) - East Tennessee Society of Professional Journalists

Here are the 2024 Golden Press Card winners in the Newspaper (Small) category. The entries were judged by the Oklahoma SPJ Pro Chapter.

PERSONAL COLUMNS/REVIEW/CRITICISM (Newspaper – Small)

First Place
Contestant Name: The Daily Times
Entry Title: Lessons from a meteor shower
Entry Credit: Shanon Adame
Links: See entry, See entry
Judge Comments: Heartfelt and vulnerable while not becoming self-pitying. This was a very nice read with lovely imagery. I was right there with you, gazing at those stars.

Second Place
Contestant Name: BLANK Newspaper
Entry Title: An Ode to Bob
Entry Credit: Steve Wildsmith
Links: See entry

FEATURE REPORTING (Newspaper – Small)

First Place
Contestant Name: Johnson City Press
Entry Title: Don’t Forget Us
Entry Credit: Grace Teater
Links: See entry
Judge Comments: Lots of deep details and reporting on a hard story about resilience and recovery. Well done.

Second Place
Contestant Name: BLANK Newspaper
Entry Title: A Labor of Love
Entry Credit: Steve Wildsmith
Links: See entry

DEADLINE/BREAKING NEWS REPORTING (Newspaper – Small)

First Place
Contestant Name: Johnson City Press
Entry Title: JCP Breaking News
Entry Credit: Newsroom/Staff
Links: See entry, See entry, See entry
Judge Comments: In-depth reporting on a challenging situation. Great immediate response to breaking news.

HURRICANE HELENE IN-DEPTH COVERAGE (Newspaper – Small)

First Place
Contestant Name: Johnson City Press
Entry Title: JCP Helene in-depth
Entry Credit: Grace Teater, Brandon Smith, Laken Greene
Links: See entry, See entry, See entry, See entry, See entry
Judge Comments: Nice photos and details and descriptions.

Second Place
Contestant Name: BLANK Newspaper
Entry Title: A Volunteer State of Mind – How Appalachia has rallied to help with Helene recovery efforts
Entry Credit: Luke Brogden
Links: See entry

SERIES/PACKAGE/PROJECT WRITING (Newspaper – Small)

First Place
Contestant Name: Johnson City Press
Entry Title: JCP Package entry
Entry Credit: Brandon Smith
Links: See entry, See entry, See entry, See entry, See entry
Judge Comments: Impactful and watchdog reporting.

HURRICANE HELENE BREAKING COVERAGE (Newspaper – Small)

First Place
Contestant Name: Johnson City Press
Entry Title: JCP Helene Breaking News Coverage
Entry Credit: Brandon Smith, Robert Houk, Newsroom/Team staff
Links: See entry, See entry, See entry, See entry, See entry
Judge Comments: Thorough coverage by a team that obviously cares and was entrenched in the devastation of Helene. A good mix of storytelling and fact sharing. Kudos to excellent coverage.

INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING (Newspaper – Small)

First Place
Contestant Name: Johnson City Press
Entry Title: JCP Investigative Journalism
Entry Credit: Brandon Smith, Allison Winters, Kimberly Harr
Links: See entry, See entry, See entry, See entry

Category Comments: The journalists worked as a team to stay with this story from breaking to its final finish. Well balanced, vigilant reporting.

GENERAL REPORTING (Newspaper – Small)

First Place
Contestant Name: Johnson City Press
Entry Title: Don’t Forget Us: Small mountain community a portrait of resilience for East TN
Entry Credit: Grace Teater
Links: See entry

Category Comments: The journalist captured the reader’s attention right from the lede with the human aspect of Hurricane Helene’s impact on survivors. The featured subjects carry the reader deeper into what would have otherwise been a simple staff report documenting the path of the storm and related facts. Such depth demonstrated the reporter’s dedication to good storytelling and excellent fact gathering.

Second Place
Contestant Name: BLANK Newspaper
Entry Title: An Attitude of Gratitude: J.C. Haun returns to Waynestock a changed man
Entry Credit: Steve Wildsmith
Links: See entry