Sierra Vista Herald, Tucson Weekly win top state honors

PHOENIX — The Sierra Vista Herald and the Tucson Weekly, both published by Wick Communications, won Arizona Newspaper of the Year awards during the Arizona Newspapers Association’s 2011 Better Newspapers Contest.

This year, 46 newspapers and 19 high schools entered the contest for a total of 1,186 entries.

In addition to the top honor among all Arizona newspapers, The Herald also received a number of individual awards.

Matt Hickman was awarded two top honors, earning a first place for his critical commentary on President Obama’s Middle East policy. Hickman received a third place award for best team or sports beat coverage for Buena High School Boys basketball.

Former Herald sports and education reporter Liz Manring won a first place award for her critical feature on “Banning Books in the 21st Century.” Manring also earned a second place award for her sports article, “Coaches Off Campus.”

Other awards received by The Herald included:

• Second for newspaper online site/webpage

• First for departmental news/copy editing excellence.

• Second for Editorial Page Excellence.

• First for Page Design Excellence

• First for Special Section/Newspaper supplement/magazine for 2010 Year in Review.

The Weekly dominated the individual writing categories in its circulation category (non-dailies with a circulation of more than 10,000), and won several newspaper-wide honors as well.

Beyond the Newspaper of the Year honor, the Weekly’s biggest award came in the Community Service/Journalistic Achievement category, for the coverage of the mass shooting on Jan. 8, 2011, that left six dead, and 13 others, including Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, wounded.

The 11 other awards earned by the Weekly:

• First place for Best Sustained Coverage or Series: Jim Nintzel, for his Congressional District 8 election coverage.

• First place for Investigative Reporting: Leo W. Banks, for “Smugglers’ Paradise” (Nov. 25, 2010), and his subsequent coverage of the death of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry. Terry was killed in the line of duty in the Peck Canyon Corridor three weeks after Banks’ Nov. 25 piece warned of increasing dangers there.

• First place for Best Sports Story: Ton Danehy, for “Rez Ball” (March 3, 2011).

• First place for Best Column, Analysis or Commentary: Renée Downing, for “We Can Learn a Lot From Our Animals About How to Accept the Passage of Time” (April 28, 2011).

• Second place for Best Special Section: Best of Tucson® (Sept. 23, 2010).

• Second place for Best Column, Analysis or Commentary: Tom Danehy, for “Tom’s Modest Proposal for a Rewrite of the DREAM Act Bill” (Feb. 24, 2011).

• Second place for Best Column, Feature or Criticism: Stephen Seigel, for “Albums in Your Stocking” (Dec. 16, 2010).

• Second place for Best Multimedia Storytelling: Josh Morgan, for “Last Days of the UMC Memorial” (The Range, Feb. 7, 2011).

• Third place for Page-Design Excellence.

• Third place for Investigative Reporting: Tim Vanderpool, for “Your Tax Dollars at Work” (Nov. 18, 2010).

• Third place for Best News Feature Story: Mari Herreras, for “Honoring Chelsie” (May 6, 2010).

Randy Hoeft of the Yuma Sun, and Dave Brown of San Pedro Valley News-Sun and Arizona Range News (which are fellow Wick publications) were named the ANA 2011 Photographers of the Year. Brady McCombs of the Arizona Daily Star, and Shanna Hogan of Scottsdale Times were named the ANA 2011 Journalists of the Year. Dan Shearer of the Green Valley News-Sun (yet another Wick publication) and a team from the Star won Story of the Year honors.