Herald staff members bring home multiple awards

Here are most of the winners of the 2013 SPJ Northwest Excellence in Journalism Contest for daily newspapers with a circulation of 25,001 to 65,000. This honors the best in journalism in SPJ’s Region 10, which includes Alaska, Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Montana. This year’s contest covers work produced or published in 2013. The awards were announced at ceremonies Saturday in Seattle and Portland, Oregon.

General Excellence

1st place: The Bulletin

2nd place: The Columbian

3rd place: The Daily Herald, Everett, Washington

Comprehensive Coverage

1st place: Kyle Hopkins, Anchorage Daily News, State of Intoxication

2nd place: Tyler Graf, The Columbian, “Travis &Mandy: A journey through addiction,” “Down a winding path” and “Paths to Sobriety diverge”

3rd place: Scott North and Noah Haglund, The Daily Herald, Fall from grace

Investigative Reporting

1st place: Scott North and Noah Haglund, The Daily Herald, Aaron Reardon’s fall from grace

2nd place: Stevie Mathieu, The Columbian, Benton’s ballyhooed management experience is hazy

3rd place: Aaron Corvin, The Columbian, Port of Vancouver open meetings law violations

Spot News Reporting

1st place: Diana Hefley and Rikki King, The Daily Herald, Everyone he met mattered to him

2nd place: Gale Fiege and Eric Stevick, The Daily Herald, All Saved After Bridge Collapses

3rd place: Bill Sheets, The Daily Herald, Lake Stevens runner just feet away from explosion

Crime and Justice Reporting

1st place: Eric Stevick, The Daily Herald, A bleak life, a tragic death

2nd place: Kyle Hopkins, Anchorage Daily News, A knock at the door

3rd place: Tyler Richardson, Tri-City Herald, Sex offenders next door

Government &Politics Reporting

1st place: Noah Haglund and Diana Hefley, The Daily Herald, Stuck with the bill

2nd place: Ross Courtney, Yakima Herald-Republic, Mad Cow: Did We Learn Anything

3rd place: Tyler Graf, The Columbian, Officials online learn new roles for chat

Health Reporting

1st place: Markian Hawryluk, The Bulletin, This little clinic said “no” to big pharma

2nd place: Markian Hawryluk,The Bulletin (Bend, Ore.), Blocking Generics

3rd place: Quinn Brown, The Daily Herald, From professor to patient

Environment &Science Reporting

1st place: Aaron Corvin, The Columbian, Uneasy neighbors

2nd place: Eric Florip, The Columbian, A world of interest in St. Helens science

3rd place: Kate Prengaman, Yakima Herald-Republic, Paradise, watered down

Business Reporting

1st place: Elon Glucklich, The Bulletin, State action opens new front on MERS

2nd place: Aaron Corvin, The Columbian, Nike recruitment efforts revealed

3rd place: Julie Muhlstein, The Daily Herald, For mill workers, a year shaped by loss

Social Issues Reporting

1st place: Kyle Hopkins, Anchorage Daily News, Fighting a killer: How Nome built a safety net for drinkers

2nd place: Sara Schilling, Tri-City Herald, The Charitable Cities

3rd place: Diana Hefley, The Daily Herald, Two strangers, two saviors

Personalities Reporting

1st place: Andrea Brown, The Daily Herald, Hot rod legend is still popping wheelies

2nd place: Andrea Brown, The Daily Herald, This housewife is the real deal

3rd place: Tom Vogt, The Columbian, Deep Respect

Lifestyles Reporting

1st place: Tom Vogt, The Columbian, Lawn-ch of a Lifetime

2nd place: Andrea Brown, The Daily Herald, More men dyeing to look younger

3rd place: Marissa Harshman, The Columbian, A hunger for food knowledge

Long Feature Story

1st place: Kyle Hopkins, Anchorage Daily News, After the crash

2nd place: Sheila Miller, The Bulletin, The (ex) spy among us

3rd place: Mike Dunham, Anchorage Daily News, 70 years ago this month the Battle of Attu raged

Arts Reporting

1st place: Andrea Brown, The Daily Herald, Gordon Ramsay comes to town

2nd place: Gale Fiege, The Daily Herald, And the rest is music history

3rd place: Pat Muir, Yakima Herald-Republic, Art &Ambition (Mighty Tieton’s Mosaic Project)

Sports Reporting

1st place: Roger Underwood, Yakima Herald-Republic, The Paper Trail (CWU football coach firing)

2nd place: Craig Craker, Tri-City Herald, Smaller moments make for big miracle

3rd place: Dave Thomas, Yakima Herald-Republic, Minor Leagues, Major Hurdles: Pro Sports in Yakima Valley face uphill struggle

Sports Feature Story

1st place: Eric Stevick, The Daily Herald, Small gesture, big difference

2nd place: Paul Valencia, The Columbian. Blocking Cancer

3rd place: Craig Craker, Tri-City Herald, Tough girl

Sports Column

1st place: Greg Jayne, The Columbian, Greg Jayne: Feb. 10; May 12; July 14

2nd place: John Boyle, The Daily Herald, 1) Hey! Why so late? 2) Stern takes another jab 3) Wrestling’s Olympic flameout

3rd place: Roger Underwood, Yakima Herald-Republic, Feeling at home (first of three columns in entry)

Editorial &Commentary

1st place: John Laird, The Columbian, In our view: March 8; May 3; July 11

2nd place: Neal Pattison, The Daily Herald, 1) A damnable convenience 2) Let’s not take a flying leap 3) Baseball’s rivalry chills out

3rd place: Peter Jackson,The Daily Herald, 1) Hope for the waterfront 2) Peace after the IAM vote 3) Hitching to conservation

General Column

1st place: Julie Muhlstein, The Daily Herald, 1) At-risk youths urged to ask ‘if’ 2) Long before Seahawks’ 12th man 3) Survivors share, release

2nd place: Greg Jayne, The Columbian, Greg Jayne: Sept. 22; Oct. 20; Oct. 27

3rd place: John Laird, The Columbian, John Laird: Jan. 20; Feb. 3; May 26

Page Design

1st place: Katie Mayer, The Daily Herald, 1) All saved … 2) Fall from grace 3) Ahhh, autumn

2nd place: Marsha Matta, The Columbian

Page design: Feb. 3; Oct. 20; Dec. 29

3rd place: Savannah Tranchell, Yakima Herald-Republic, Three page designs

Headlines

1st place: Dave Leder, Yakima Herald-Republic, The bong squad (first of six headlines in entry)

2nd place: Colleen Keller, The Columbian

3rd place: Susan Abe, The Columbian

News Photography

1st place: Larry Mayer, Billings Gazette, Shooting Reaction

2nd place: Ross Courtney, Yakima Herald-Republic, Prosser wildfire

3rd place: Larry Mayer, Billings Gazette, Flood Cleanup

Sports Photography

1st place: Troy Wayrynen, The Columbian, Snowshoeing

2nd place: Nick Adams, The Everett Herald, Golf Watch

3rd place: Zachary Kaufman, The Columbian, Dunked

Meanwhile, HeraldNet.com won the award for best general news website, competing across all media and newspaper circulation sizes:

1st place: The Daily Herald, HeraldNet.com

2nd place: KING-TV, KING5.com

3rd place: Seattle Times, Seattletimes.com

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