The Graham Leader wins awards in TPA Texas Better Newspaper Contest News Staff Tue, 06/25/2024 - 12:58 pm
(THOMAS WALLNER | THE GRAHAM LEADER) Awards on display at the front of The Graham Leader officer which were presented Saturday, June 22 to the newspaper during the Texas Better Newspaper Contest Awards Banquet.
Thomas Wallner editor@grahamleader.com
The Graham Leader came away with eight awards from the Texas Press Association’s Texas Better Newspaper Contest, including two first-place plaques.
The awards were announced Saturday, June 22 during the Texas Better Newspaper Contest Awards Banquet at the TPA Convention and Trade Show in College Station. Entries were judged by members of the Georgia Press Association.
The 2023 contest featured 18 categories, with 100 newspapers submitting 956 entries in the contest. Competitions were divided into divisions in which newspapers compete against publications of similar circulation.
The Leader was included in Division 4, which with Division 3 had 24 semiweekly newspapers competing.
The Leader was presented two first place awards for General Excellence and Page Design, with judges making notes of the General Excellence category which required newspapers to submit two complete editions to be judged.
“Eye-catching front page layouts contain a good mix of serious and feature news,” the judge said. “Lots of local photos throughout the editions and a good variety of sports covered, with lots of local coverage.”
In Sweepstakes for Division 4 Semiweeklies, The Leader was second. In the sweepstakes category, awards are presented in all nine circulation divisions and broken up into two separate divisions.
Sweepstakes winners are determined by the points earned from awards in each division. Points are measured based on the placing of the award won.
Second place awards for News Writing, News Photography and Feature Photography were also presented to The Leader.
Judges made note of the News Writing entries regarding the Oak Grove Colored–William P. Johnston Memorial Cemetery and a filing error which impacted hundreds of county court cases spanning five years.
“Two great articles that on the surface might seem dull. The cemetery story reaches back generations in the local county’s history and cultures – all handled with sensitivity and clarity,” the judge said.
The judges also made note of the submitted photos in the Feature Photography category, which included photos from events such as Rotary Club of Graham Duck Derby, Fourth at the Fields and Crawfish and Cannons.
“What makes photography so special is how it illustrates the essence of community,” the judge said. “The photos in this entry show that with high quality – the sharpness of the airplane; timing of the cannon; the patriotism of the fireworks; the peacefulness, yet the anticipation of duck derby; and the aroma that seemingly comes off the page for the food trucks.”
Graham received a fourth place award for Sports Photography from entries from various the Steers and Lady Blues games.
The 2023-2024 Graham Community Guide received a third place award for Special Section for Semiweekly Division II.
“One of the best produced community guides we’ve seen,” the judge said. “Lots of pages, lots of ads, lots of pizazz.”
Publisher Kylie Bailey recognized the staff and community for making the awards possible.
“I am so proud that the hard work all our staff does each day has been recognized on a larger scale. We could not have accomplished this without our advertisers and subscribers,” Bailey said. “As the oldest business in Young County, we are honored to serve this community and will be bringing home more awards for our supporters to be proud of.”
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