From: Louisiana Press Association
Subject: Better Newspaper Competition, Free Circulation and Special Interest Competition, Student Newspaper Competition, Better Website Competition, and Individual Competition Results
Embargoed until 3 p.m., Saturday, June 18th
The Advocate (Baton Rouge), The Times (Houma), the Daily News (Bogalusa), The Plaquemines Gazette (Belle Chasse) and the Southwest Daily News (Sulphur), earned Newspaper of the Year honors in their respective divisions at the 136th Annual Louisiana Press Association Convention in Lake Charles. The designation for the Newspaper of the Year is based on the number of points earned in the Better Newspaper Editorial Competition and the Better Newspaper Advertising Competition for 2015 with awards being given in individual contests for first, second, and third places. The editorial contests range from news story writing to graphic design while the advertising entries were judged based on design, creativity and effectiveness. The Alabama Press Association judged both competitions this year. Fifty-eight newspapers, publications, and college/university student newspapers submitted 2,777 entries. Earning sweepstakes awards in the editorial competition were The Advocate (Baton Rouge), the Daily Comet (Thibodaux), The Daily News (Bogalusa), the L’Observateur (Laplace), the Southwest Daily News (Sulphur), The Psychology Times (Baton Rouge) and the Capital City News (Baton Rouge). Earning sweepstakes awards in the advertising competition were The Advocate (Baton Rouge), The Times (Houma), The Daily News (Bogalusa), the Gonzales Weekly Citizen (Gonzales), the Southwest Daily News (Sulphur), the Point of Vue Magazine (Houma), and The Slidell Independent (Slidell). For its fight on behalf of the public's right to know, please congratulate The Advocate (Baton Rouge) for earning this year's Freedom of Information Award. When the board that oversees Louisiana State University set out to find a new chief executive, it came up with a novel way to keep its search secret. State law mandates that the names of applicants be made public, so LSU decided to pretend that only one person applied for the prestigious post: the man who got the job, F. King Alexander. Everyone else, the board said, was a candidate but not an applicant. It took two years of fighting, but in 2015, The Advocate (Baton Rouge) prevailed in court and forced LSU to reveal the names of other candidates interviewed. That wasn't all The Advocate (Baton Rouge) won. The university was forced to pay all of the newspaper's legal costs for disregarding Louisiana's public records laws.
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2015 Better Newspaper Competition BEST FRONT PAGE Division Place Newspaper Division 1 1st Place The Town Talk Division 1 2nd Place The Courier Division 1 3rd Place The Advocate Division 2 1st Place The Times Division 2 2nd Place Daily Comet Division 2 3rd Place Livingston Parish News Division 3 1st Place The Daily News Division 3 2nd Place Bossier Press-Tribune Division 3 3rd Place The Ruston Daily Leader Division 4 1st Place Madison Journal Division 4 2nd Place West Side Journal Division 4 3rd Place The Ville Platte Gazette Division 5 1st Place St. Francisville Democrat Division 5 2nd Place Southwest Daily News Division 5 3rd Place Kentwood News-Ledger Division 6 1st Place Forum News Division 6 2nd Place Acadiana LifeStyle Division 6 3rd Place Faith N Soul Magazine Division 7 1st Place Capital City News Division 7 2nd Place Guardian Division 7 3rd Place Slidell Independent Division 8 1st Place Loyola Maroon
BEST EDITORIAL PAGE Division Place Newspaper Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Division 1 2nd Place The News-Star Division 1 3rd Place The Advertiser Division 2 1st Place The Times Division 2 2nd Place Daily Comet Division 2 3rd Place Livingston Parish News Division 3 1st Place Concordia Sentinel Division 3 2nd Place The Daily News Division 3 3rd Place The Ruston Daily Leader Division 4 1st Place The Ville Platte Gazette Division 4 2nd Place Madison Journal Division 4 3rd Place L'Observateur Division 5 1st Place Southwest Daily News Division 5 2nd Place The St. Helena Echo Division 8 1st Place Loyola Maroon
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BEST SINGLE EDITORIAL Division Place Newspaper Writer(s) Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Danny Heitman Division 1 2nd Place The Town Talk Jim Smilie Division 1 3rd Place The Advertiser Ken Stickney Division 2 1st Place Livingston Parish News Mike Dowty Division 2 2nd Place The Times John DeSantis Division 2 3rd Place Livingston Parish News Mike Dowty Division 3 1st Place The Daily News Staff Division 3 2nd Place The Daily News Staff Division 3 3rd Place Bossier Press-Tribune Sean Green Division 4 1st Place The St. Bernard Voice Chad M. West Division 4 2nd Place West Side Journal Quinn Welsch Division 4 3rd Place The Ville Platte Gazette Elizabeth West Division 5 1st Place Plaquemine Post South Andrew Green Division 5 2nd Place Plaquemine Post South Andrew Green Division 5 3rd Place Amite Tangi-Digest Melinda Giardina Division 6 1st Place Bayou Catholic Louis G. Aguirre
BEST FEATURE STORY Division Place Newspaper Writer(s) Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Richard Burgesss Division 1 2nd Place The Advocate Staff Division 1 3rd Place New Orleans Advocate Ian McNulty Division 2 1st Place The Times John DeSantis Division 2 2nd Place The Times John DeSantis Division 2 3rd Place Daily Comet Maki Somosot Division 3 1st Place Bossier Press-Tribune Amanda Simmons, Russell Hedges Division 3 2nd Place Bossier Press-Tribune Amanda Simmons Division 3 3rd Place The Ruston Daily Leader Nancy Bergeron Division 4 1st Place Madison Journal Stephanie Bell Division 4 2nd Place West Side Journal Quinn Welsch Division 4 3rd Place Gonzales Weekly Citizen Brandie L. Richardson Division 5 1st Place Amite Tangi-Digest Amber Silvers Division 5 2nd Place Amite Tangi-Digest Amber Silvers Division 5 3rd Place Amite Tangi-Digest Megan Ourso Division 6 1st Place Psychology Times Susan Andrews, Julie Nelson, John Magee Division 6 2nd Place Tiger Rag Cody Worsham Division 6 3rd Place Acadiana LifeStyle Lisa Hanchey Division 7 1st Place Guardian Chuck Cannon Division 7 2nd Place Central City News Woody Jenkins Division 7 3rd Place Central City News Woody Jenkins Division 8 1st Place Xavier Herald Kaelin Maloid Division 8 2nd Place Tech Talk Brennen Lege Division 8 3rd Place Loyola Maroon Staff
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BEST NEWS STORY Division Place Newspaper Writer(s) Division 1 1st Place The News-Star Barbara Leader Division 1 2nd Place The Advocate Rebekah Allen Division 1 3rd Place New Orleans Advocate Jim Mustian Division 2 1st Place The Times Karl Gommel Division 2 2nd Place Livingston Parish News John Dupont Division 2 3rd Place The Times Jean-Paul Arguello Division 3 1st Place Bossier Press-Tribune Amanda Simmons Division 3 2nd Place The Daily News Randy Hammons Division 3 3rd Place Bossier Press-Tribune Amanda Simmons Division 4 1st Place The Plaquemines Gazette Kari Dequine Harden Division 4 2nd Place L'Observateur Raquel Baker Division 4 3rd Place L'Observateur Raquel Baker Division 5 1st Place The St. Helena Echo Megan Ourso Division 5 2nd Place Southwest Daily News Heather Regan White Division 5 3rd Place Amite Tangi-Digest Amber Silvers Division 6 1st Place Forum News Susan Reeks Division 6 2nd Place Psychology Times Staff Division 6 3rd Place Livingston Business & Real Estate Journal Helen Turner Division 7 1st Place Slidell Independent Kevin Chiri Division 7 2nd Place Slidell Independent Kevin Chiri Division 7 3rd Place Slidell Independent Chrissy Smith Division 8 1st Place Loyola Maroon Rebeca Trejo Division 8 2nd Place Loyola Maroon Mark Robinson Division 8 3rd Place Loyola Maroon Lauren Saizan
BEST SPORTS STORY Division Place Newspaper Writer(s) Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Staff Division 1 2nd Place The Advocate Ross Dellenger Division 1 3rd Place The News-Star Sean Isabella Division 2 1st Place The Times Casey Gisclair Division 2 2nd Place The Ouachita Citizen Jake Martin Division 2 3rd Place The Times Casey Gisclair Division 3 1st Place Concordia Sentinel Joey Martin Division 3 2nd Place Bossier Press-Tribune Amanda Simmons Division 3 3rd Place The Ruston Daily Leader T. Scott Boatright Division 4 1st Place Madison Journal Blake Bell Division 4 2nd Place L'Observateur Ryan Arena, Kyle Barnett, Lori Lyons Division 4 3rd Place The Eunice News Tom Dodge Division 5 1st Place Southwest Daily News Rodrick Anderson Division 5 2nd Place Southwest Daily News Rodrick Anderson Division 5 3rd Place Southwest Daily News Rodrick Anderson Division 8 1st Place Tech Talk Matt Valcho Division 8 2nd Place Gramblinite Diana Sepulveda Division 8 3rd Place Gramblinite Brandon LaGarde
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BEST BREAKING NEWS STORY Division Place Newspaper Writer(s) Division 1 1st Place The News-Star Staff Division 1 2nd Place The Advertiser Staff Division 1 3rd Place The Advocate Staff Division 2 1st Place Daily Comet Maki Somosot Division 2 2nd Place Daily Comet Maki Somosot Division 2 3rd Place Livingston Parish News John Dupont Division 3 1st Place The Ruston Daily Leader Nancy Bergeron Division 3 2nd Place The Ruston Daily Leader Nancy Bergeron Division 3 3rd Place The Daily News Randy Hammons Division 4 1st Place The Eunice News Harlan Kirgan Division 4 2nd Place The Ville Platte Gazette Nick Jagneaux Division 4 3rd Place L'Observateur Stephen Hemelt Division 5 1st Place Kentwood News-Ledger Marcia Sims Division 5 2nd Place Amite Tangi-Digest Matt Surcouf Division 5 3rd Place Southwest Daily News Marilyn Monroe Division 6 1st Place Forum News Lydia Earhart Division 7 1st Place Central City News Woody Jenkins Division 7 2nd Place Central City News Woody Jenkins Division 7 3rd Place Slidell Independent Kevin Chiri
BEST REGULAR COLUMN (SAM HANNA AWARD) Division Place Newspaper Writer(s) Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Stephanie Grace Division 1 2nd Place The Courier Keith Magill Division 1 3rd Place The Advocate James Gill Division 2 1st Place The Franklin Sun Sam Hanna Jr. Division 2 2nd Place The Times John DeSantis Division 2 3rd Place Daily Comet Keith Magill Division 3 1st Place The Daily News Randy Hammons Division 3 2nd Place The Ruston Daily Leader Nancy Bergeron Division 3 3rd Place The Ruston Daily Leader Derek Amaya Division 4 1st Place The St. Bernard Voice Ron Chapman Division 4 2nd Place L'Observateur Stephen Hemelt Division 4 3rd Place Coushatta Citizen Julie Murphree Division 5 1st Place Southwest Daily News Heather Regan White Division 5 2nd Place Southwest Daily News Marilyn Monroe Division 5 3rd Place Southwest Daily News Brian Trahan Division 6 1st Place Psychology Times Dr. Julie Nelson Division 6 2nd Place Forum News Lou Gehrig Burnett Division 6 3rd Place Tiger Rag Jim Engster Division 7 1st Place Guardian Chuck Cannon Division 7 2nd Place Slidell Independent Betsy Swenson Division 7 3rd Place Central City News Woody Jenkins Division 8 1st Place Tech Talk Rachel Maxwell Division 8 2nd Place Gramblinite Maria Villacorta Division 8 3rd Place Tech Talk Ellie Moslander
2015 Better Newspaper Competition Page 7 of 22
BEST SPORTS COLUMN Division Place Newspaper Writer(s) Division 1 1st Place American Press Jim Gazzolo Division 1 2nd Place American Press Scooter Hobbs Division 1 3rd Place The Advocate Les East Division 2 1st Place Daily Comet Chris Singleton Division 2 2nd Place Daily Comet Kelly McElroy Division 2 3rd Place Daily Comet Teddy Renois Division 3 1st Place The Ruston Daily Leader O.K. Davis Division 3 2nd Place Concordia Sentinel Joey Martin Division 3 3rd Place Concordia Sentinel Joey Martin Division 4 1st Place L'Observateur Ryan Arena Division 4 2nd Place Gonzales Weekly Citizen Kyle Riviere Division 4 3rd Place The Ville Platte Gazette Tracey Jagneaux Division 5 1st Place St. Francisville Democrat Howard Arceneaux Division 5 2nd Place Amite Tangi-Digest Deke Bellavia Division 5 3rd Place St. Francisville Democrat Howard Arceneaux Division 6 1st Place Bayou Catholic Ed Daniels Division 8 1st Place Tech Talk Matt Valcho
Best Overall Sports Coverage Division Place Newspaper Division 1 1st Place The Advertiser Division 1 2nd Place American Press Division 1 3rd Place The Courier Division 2 1st Place The Times Division 2 2nd Place Daily Comet Division 2 3rd Place The Ouachita Citizen Division 3 1st Place The Daily News Division 4 1st Place Gonzales Weekly Citizen Division 4 2nd Place L'Observateur Division 4 3rd Place The St. Bernard Voice Division 5 1st Place St. Francisville Democrat Division 5 2nd Place Southwest Daily News Division 5 3rd Place Plaquemine Post South
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BEST LIFESTYLE COVERAGE Division Place Newspaper Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Division 1 2nd Place American Press Division 1 3rd Place The Advocate Division 2 1st Place The Times Division 2 2nd Place Daily Comet Division 2 3rd Place Livingston Parish News Division 3 1st Place The Ruston Daily Leader Division 3 2nd Place Teche News Division 3 3rd Place The Daily News Division 4 1st Place L'Observateur Division 4 2nd Place The Plaquemines Gazette Division 5 1st Place Southwest Daily News Division 5 2nd Place The St. Helena Echo Division 5 3rd Place Amite Tangi-Digest Division 6 1st Place Acadiana LifeStyle Division 6 2nd Place Forum News Division 6 3rd Place Psychology Times Division 7 1st Place Capital City News Division 7 2nd Place Central City News Division 7 3rd Place Slidell Independent
BEST NEWS COVERAGE Division Place Newspaper Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Division 1 2nd Place The Advertiser Division 1 3rd Place The Courier Division 2 1st Place Daily Comet Division 2 2nd Place The Ouachita Citizen Division 2 3rd Place Livingston Parish News Division 3 1st Place The Daily News Division 4 1st Place The Eunice News Division 4 2nd Place West Side Journal Division 4 3rd Place L'Observateur Division 5 1st Place Plaquemine Post South Division 5 2nd Place St. Francisville Democrat Division 5 3rd Place Amite Tangi-Digest Division 6 1st Place Psychology Times Division 7 1st Place Slidell Independent Division 7 2nd Place Capital City News
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BEST CONTINUING COVERAGE OF A SINGLE NEWS EVENT Division Place Newspaper Writer(s) Division 1 1st Place The Town Talk Melissa Gregory Division 1 2nd Place The Town Talk Leigh Guidry Division 1 3rd Place The Advocate Staff Division 2 1st Place Daily Comet Jonathan Olivier, Chris LeBlanc, Jacob Batte Division 2 2nd Place The Times John DeSantis Division 2 3rd Place The Ouachita Citizen Zach Parker, Johnny Gunter Division 3 1st Place Concordia Sentinel Stanley Nelson Division 3 2nd Place The Ruston Daily Leader Derek Amaya Division 3 3rd Place The Ruston Daily Leader Jessica Darden Division 4 1st Place Madison Journal Blake Bell Division 4 2nd Place West Side Journal Quinn Welsch, Emily Bell Division 4 3rd Place L'Observateur Staff Division 5 1st Place Southwest Daily News Heather Regan White, Marilyn Monroe Division 5 2nd Place St. Francisville Democrat Howard Arceneaux Division 5 3rd Place Kentwood News-Ledger Staff Division 6 1st Place Psychology Times Staff Division 6 2nd Place Psychology Times Staff Division 7 1st Place Slidell Independent Kevin Chiri Division 7 2nd Place Guardian Chuck Cannon Division 7 3rd Place Slidell Independent Kevin Chiri
BEST INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING (GIBBS ADAM AWARD) Division Place Newspaper Writer(s) Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Gordon Russell, Maya Lau, Steve Hardy Division 1 2nd Place The Courier Bridget Mire, Maki Somosot Division 1 3rd Place The Advertiser Megan Wyatt Division 2 1st Place The Times John DeSantis Division 2 2nd Place Livingston Parish News John Dupont Division 2 3rd Place Daily Comet Jacob Batte Division 6 1st Place Psychology Times Julie Nelson Division 6 2nd Place Psychology Times Julie Nelson Division 6 3rd Place Psychology Times Julie Nelson Division 7 1st Place Capital City News Woody Jenkins Division 7 2nd Place Capital City News Woody Jenkins Division 7 3rd Place Slidell Independent Kevin Chiri
BEST STORY GENERATED BY PUBLIC NOTICE Division Place Newspaper Writer(s) Division 1 1st Place The Courier Maki Somosot Division 1 2nd Place New Orleans Advocate John Simerman Division 1 3rd Place The Advocate Steve Hardy Division 2 1st Place Daily Comet Maki Somosot Division 2 2nd Place Livingston Parish News Mike Dowty Division 2 3rd Place Daily Comet Maki Somosot
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MOST EFFECTIVE USE OF GRAPHIC DESIGN ON A SINGLE PAGE Division Place Newspaper Designer(s) Division 1 1st Place American Press Donna Price Division 1 2nd Place The Advocate Charles Chauff Division 1 3rd Place The Advocate Jay Martin Division 2 1st Place The Times Gavin Stevens Division 2 2nd Place Livingston Parish News Paul Hatton Division 2 3rd Place Livingston Parish News Paul Hatton Division 3 1st Place Teche News Mark DeVillier Division 3 2nd Place Teche News Mark DeVillier Division 3 3rd Place Teche News Mark DeVillier Division 4 1st Place The Plaquemines Gazette Brandi Rollo Division 4 2nd Place The St. Bernard Voice Brandi Rollo Division 4 3rd Place The Plaquemines Gazette Brandi Rollo Division 5 1st Place Southwest Daily News Brian Trahan Division 5 2nd Place Kentwood News-Ledger Staff Division 5 3rd Place Amite Tangi-Digest Matt Surcouf, Virgil Howell Division 6 1st Place Tiger Rag Joe Gallinaro Division 6 2nd Place Forum News Matt Muhitch Division 6 3rd Place Forum News Matt Muhitch Division 7 1st Place Capital City News Woody Jenkins Division 7 2nd Place Capital City News Woody Jenkins Division 7 3rd Place Central City News Woody Jenkins, Jolice Provost Division 8 1st Place Xavier Herald Nicholas Davison Division 8 2nd Place Loyola Maroon Karla Rosas Division 8 3rd Place Loyola Maroon Naasha Dotlwala
BEST HEADLINE Division Place Newspaper Writer(s) Division 1 1st Place American Press Nick Walsh Division 1 2nd Place American Press Rhett Manuel Division 1 3rd Place The Courier Brent St. Germain Division 2 1st Place Daily Comet Keith Magill, Brett Barrouquere Division 2 2nd Place Livingston Parish News Mike Dowty Division 2 3rd Place Daily Comet Brent St. Germain Division 3 1st Place The Ruston Daily Leader Nancy Bergeron Division 3 2nd Place The Ruston Daily Leader Derek Amaya Division 3 3rd Place The Ruston Daily Leader T. Scott Boatright Division 4 1st Place The Eunice News Harlan Kirgan Division 4 2nd Place The Ville Platte Gazette Raymond Partsch III Division 4 3rd Place Madison Journal Blake Bell Division 5 1st Place Southwest Daily News Brian Trahan Division 5 2nd Place Kentwood News-Ledger Sara Patrick Division 5 3rd Place Amite Tangi-Digest Don Ellzey Division 6 1st Place Acadiana LifeStyle Shanna Perkins Division 6 2nd Place Acadiana LifeStyle Amanda J. Harris Division 6 3rd Place Acadiana LifeStyle Amanda J. Harris Division 8 1st Place Loyola Maroon Staff
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BEST NEWS PHOTO Division Place Newspaper Photographer(s) Division 1 1st Place New Orleans Advocate Matthew Hintom Division 1 2nd Place The Advocate Hilary Scheinuk Division 1 3rd Place The Advocate Bill Feig Division 2 1st Place Daily Comet Abby Tabor Division 2 2nd Place Daily Comet Abby Tabor Division 2 3rd Place The Daily Review Crystal Thielepape Division 3 1st Place Concordia Sentinel Rhett Powell Division 3 2nd Place The Daily News Randy Hammons Division 3 3rd Place Teche News Sally Angelle Division 4 1st Place Madison Journal Blake Bell Division 4 2nd Place The Ville Platte Gazette Raymond Partsch III Division 4 3rd Place The Eunice News Claudette Olivier Division 5 1st Place Southwest Daily News Lisa Kennedy Division 5 2nd Place Amite Tangi-Digest Heather Holmes Division 5 3rd Place Plaquemine Post South Andrew Green Division 6 1st Place Tiger Rag Jonathan Mailhes Division 6 2nd Place Forum News Brittney Trahan Division 6 3rd Place Forum News Jim Noetzel Division 7 1st Place Guardian Chuck Cannon Division 7 2nd Place Capital City News Ron Moore Division 7 3rd Place Central City News Jolice Provost Division 8 1st Place Tech Talk Devin Dronett Division 8 2nd Place Lion's Roar William Schmidt Division 8 3rd Place Lion's Roar William Schmidt
BEST FEATURE PHOTO Division Place Newspaper Photographer(s) Division 1 1st Place New Orleans Advocate Matthew Hinton Division 1 2nd Place The Advocate Bill Feig Division 1 3rd Place The Courier Benjamin Oliver Hicks Division 2 1st Place The Times Jose Delgado Division 2 2nd Place The Times Jose Delgado Division 2 3rd Place Daily Comet Abby Tabor Division 3 1st Place The Ruston Daily Leader Jessica Darden Division 3 2nd Place The Daily News Justin Schuver Division 3 3rd Place Teche News Sally Angelle Division 4 1st Place The Plaquemines Gazette Kari Dequine Harden Division 4 2nd Place The Ville Platte Gazette Raymond Partsch III Division 4 3rd Place The St. Bernard Voice Chad M. West Division 5 1st Place Southwest Daily News Lisa Kennedy Division 5 2nd Place Kentwood News-Ledger Sara Patrick Division 5 3rd Place The St. Helena Echo Sara Patrick Division 6 1st Place Tiger Rag Sean Richardson Division 6 2nd Place Tiger Rag Sean Richardson Division 6 3rd Place Forum News Matt Muhitch Division 7 1st Place Guardian Chuck Cannon Division 7 2nd Place Central City News Woody Jenkins Division 8 1st Place Gramblinite Katrina Harris Division 8 2nd Place Tech Talk Devin Dronett Division 8 3rd Place Dolphin Teamarious Williams
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BEST SPORTS PHOTO Division Place Newspaper Photographer(s) Division 1 1st Place American Press Rick Hickman Division 1 2nd Place The Advocate Hilary Scheinuk Division 1 3rd Place The Courier Chris Heller Division 2 1st Place The Ouachita Citizen Robert Summerlin Division 2 2nd Place The Ouachita Citizen Robert Summerlin Division 2 3rd Place The Daily Review Corwin Murray Division 3 1st Place The Daily News Chris Kinkaid Division 3 2nd Place The Daily News Chris Kinkaid Division 3 3rd Place The Daily News Chris Kinkaid Division 4 1st Place L'Observateur Lori Lyons Division 4 2nd Place L'Observateur Ryan Arena Division 4 3rd Place The Ville Platte Gazette Bruce Campbell Division 5 1st Place Kentwood News-Ledger Tee Wheeler Division 5 2nd Place Southwest Daily News Rodrick Anderson Division 5 3rd Place The St. Helena Echo Tee Wheeler Division 8 1st Place Gramblinite Jordan Cameron Division 8 2nd Place Gramblinite Jordan Cameron
BEST PHOTO PACKAGE Division Place Newspaper Photographer(s) Division 1 1st Place New Orleans Advocate Matthew Hinton, Scott Threlkeld Division 1 2nd Place American Press Kirk Meche Division 2 1st Place The Times Jose Delgado Division 2 2nd Place Livingston Parish News Mike Dowty Division 2 3rd Place Livingston Parish News John Dupont Division 3 1st Place The Daily News Justin Schuver Division 3 2nd Place The Daily News Randy Hammons Division 3 3rd Place The Daily News David Vitrano, Randy Hammons Division 4 1st Place L'Observateur Raquel Baker Division 4 2nd Place The St. Bernard Voice Chad M. West Division 4 3rd Place The Eunice News Claudette Olivier Division 5 1st Place St. Francisville Democrat Brianna Paciorka Division 5 2nd Place Southwest Daily News Rodrick Anderson Division 5 3rd Place Southwest Daily News Lisa Kennedy Division 6 1st Place Acadiana LifeStyle Jennifer Beslin Division 6 2nd Place Forum News Jim Noetzel Division 6 3rd Place Acadiana LifeStyle Jennifer Beslin Division 7 1st Place Guardian Chuck Cannon Division 7 2nd Place Capital City News Woody Jenkins, Jolice Provost Division 7 3rd Place Capital City News Woody Jenkins, Jolice Provost
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BEST SPECIAL SECTION, EDITORIAL Division Place Newspaper Division 1 1st Place The Courier Division 1 2nd Place The Courier Division 1 3rd Place The News-Star Division 2 1st Place The Times Division 2 2nd Place The Daily Review Division 3 1st Place The Daily News Division 3 2nd Place The Daily News Division 3 3rd Place Teche News Division 4 1st Place Madison Journal Division 4 2nd Place Madison Journal Division 4 3rd Place The Plaquemines Gazette Division 5 1st Place Southwest Daily News Division 5 2nd Place Southwest Daily News Division 5 3rd Place Southwest Daily News Division 6 1st Place Bayou Catholic Division 6 2nd Place Bayou Catholic Division 6 3rd Place Point of Vue Magazine Division 7 1st Place Central City News Division 7 2nd Place Capital City News Division 7 3rd Place Capital City News
COMMUNITY SERVICE / SERVICE TO READERS Division Place Newspaper Division A 1st Place New Orleans Advocate Division A 2nd Place American Press Division A 3rd Place The News-Star Division B 1st Place The Eunice News Division C 1st Place Capital City News Division C 2nd Place Psychology Times Division C 3rd Place Central City News
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION Place Newspaper 1st Place The Advocate
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GENERAL EXCELLENCE Division Place Newspaper Division 1 1st Place The Advertiser Division 1 2nd Place The Advocate Division 1 3rd Place The Town Talk Division 2 1st Place Daily Comet Division 2 2nd Place Livingston Parish News Division 2 3rd Place The Times Division 3 1st Place The Daily News Division 3 2nd Place Bossier Press- Tribune Division 4 1st Place The Eunice News Division 4 2nd Place The Plaquemines Gazette Division 4 3rd Place The St. Bernard Voice Division 5 1st Place The St. Helena Echo Division 5 2nd Place Amite Tangi-Digest Division 6 1st Place Point of Vue Magazine Division 6 2nd Place Tiger Rag Division 6 3rd Place Acadiana LifeStyle Division 7 1st Place Capital City News Division 7 2nd Place Central City News Division 7 3rd Place Slidell Independent Division 8 1st Place Gramblinite Division 8 2nd Place Loyola Maroon Division 8 3rd Place Xavier Herald
STAFF GENERATED BLACK & WHITE Division Place Newspaper Designer(s) Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Brian Golden Division 1 2nd Place American Press Heather Mulkey Division 1 3rd Place American Press Maria Torres Division 2 1st Place Livingston Parish News Paul Hatton Division 2 2nd Place Livingston Parish News Paul Hatton Division 2 3rd Place Livingston Parish News Paul Hatton Division 3 1st Place The Daily News Kim Gerald Division 3 2nd Place Teche News Mark DeVillier Division 3 3rd Place The Ruston Daily Leader Flint Boyce Division 4 1st Place Gonzales Weekly Citizen Staff Division 4 2nd Place The St. Bernard Voice Brandi Rollo Division 4 3rd Place The Ville Platte Gazette Staff Division 5 1st Place Southwest Daily News Torrey Guidry Division 5 2nd Place Southwest Daily News Torrey Guidry Division 5 3rd Place Amite Tangi-Digest Staff Division 6 1st Place Point of Vue Magazine Mariella Brochard Division 6 2nd Place Gambit Weekly Paige Hinrichs Division 6 3rd Place Gambit Weekly Paige Hinrichs Division 7 1st Place Slidell Independent Brittany Livaccari Division 7 2nd Place Slidell Independent Brittany Livaccari Division 7 3rd Place Slidell Independent Brittany Livaccari Division 8 1st Place Loyola Maroon Khadija Aziz Division 8 2nd Place Gramblinite Keion Hayes
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STAFF GENERATED COLOR Division Place Newspaper Designer(s) Division 1 1st Place American Press Maria Torres Division 1 2nd Place The Courier Staff Division 1 3rd Place The Town Talk Alaina Nunnally, Debbie Fuglaar Division 2 1st Place The Times Mariella Brochard Division 2 2nd Place Livingston Parish News Paul Hatton Division 2 3rd Place Livingston Parish News Paul Hatton Division 3 1st Place Teche News Mark DeVillier Division 3 2nd Place The Daily News Kim Gerald Division 3 3rd Place The Ruston Daily Leader Adam Hohlt Division 4 1st Place Gonzales Weekly Citizen Staff Division 4 2nd Place The St. Bernard Voice Brandi Rollo Division 4 3rd Place The Ville Platte Gazette Staff Division 5 1st Place Southwest Daily News Torrey Guidry Division 5 2nd Place Southwest Daily News Torrey Guidry Division 5 3rd Place Amite Tangi-Digest Staff Division 6 1st Place Point of Vue Magazine Mariella Brochard Division 6 2nd Place Acadiana LifeStyle Christy Quebedeaux Division 6 3rd Place Gambit Weekly David Kroll Division 7 1st Place Central City News Woody Jenkins Division 7 2nd Place Slidell Independent Brittany Livaccari Division 7 3rd Place Slidell Independent Brittany Livaccari Division 8 1st Place Loyola Maroon Khadija Aziz Division 8 2nd Place Gramblinite Keion Hayes Division 8 3rd Place Gramblinite Keion Hayes
BEST AD CAMPAIGN Division Place Newspaper Designer(s) Division 1 1st Place The Courier Shaun Hebert Division 1 2nd Place The Advocate Tim Elsea Division 2 1st Place Livingston Parish News Paul Hatton Division 2 2nd Place Livingston Parish News Paul Hatton Division 2 3rd Place Livingston Parish News Paul Hatton Division 3 1st Place Teche News Mark DeVillier Division 3 2nd Place The Daily News Kim Gerald Division 3 3rd Place The Ruston Daily Leader Adam Hohlt Division 4 1st Place Gonzales Weekly Citizen Staff Division 4 2nd Place The Ville Platte Gazette Staff Division 4 3rd Place The Eunice News Misty Gilley Division 5 1st Place Amite Tangi-Digest Staff Division 5 2nd Place Amite Tangi-Digest Staff Division 5 3rd Place St. Francisville Democrat Kristi Lynch Division 6 1st Place Point of Vue Magazine Mariella Brochard Division 6 2nd Place Point of Vue Magazine Mariella Brochard Division 6 3rd Place Acadiana LifeStyle Staff Division 7 1st Place Slidell Independent Brittany Livaccari Division 7 2nd Place Central City News Candi Lee, Jolice Provost Division 7 3rd Place Central City News Woody Jenkins
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IN-PAPER PROMOTION Division Place Newspaper Designer(s) Division 1 1st Place The News-Star Staff Division 1 2nd Place The News-Star Staff Division 1 3rd Place The Advocate Charlene Robert, Brian Golden Division 2 1st Place Livingston Parish News Paul Hatton Division 2 2nd Place Daily Comet Liz Arceneaux Division 2 3rd Place Daily Comet Shaun Hebert Division 3 1st Place The Daily News Kim Gerald Division 3 2nd Place Beauregard Daily News Torrey Guidry Division 3 3rd Place The Ruston Daily Leader Rick Hohlt Division 4 1st Place West Side Journal Cole Williams Division 4 2nd Place The Plaquemines Gazette Brandi Rollo Division 4 3rd Place The Plaquemines Gazette Brandi Rollo Division 5 1st Place Amite Tangi-Digest Staff Division 5 2nd Place Southwest Daily News Torrey Guidry Division 5 3rd Place Plaquemine Post South Staff Division 6 1st Place Forum News Danny Schlag Division 6 2nd Place Gambit Weekly Paige Hinrichs Division 6 3rd Place Gambit Weekly Lyn Vicknair, Juliet Meeks Division 7 1st Place Central City News Woody Jenkins
MULTIPLE ADVERTISER PAGE Division Place Newspaper Designer(s) Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Staff Division 1 2nd Place The Advocate Staff Division 1 3rd Place American Press Maria Torres Division 2 1st Place Livingston Parish News Paul Hatton Division 2 2nd Place Daily Comet Shaun Hebert Division 2 3rd Place Daily Comet Shaun Hebert Division 3 1st Place The Ruston Daily Leader Staff Division 3 2nd Place The Daily News Kim Gerald Division 3 3rd Place The Ruston Daily Leader Staff Division 4 1st Place The St. Bernard Voice Brandi Rollo Division 4 2nd Place Gonzales Weekly Citizen Staff Division 4 3rd Place The St. Bernard Voice Brandi Rollo Division 5 1st Place Plaquemine Post South Staff Division 5 2nd Place Southwest Daily News Torrey Guidry Division 5 3rd Place Kentwood News-Ledger Staff Division 6 1st Place Acadiana LifeStyle Christy Quebedeaux Division 6 2nd Place Point of Vue Magazine Mariella Brochard Division 6 3rd Place Acadiana LifeStyle Christy Quebedeaux Division 7 1st Place Central City News Woody Jenkins, Candi Lee Division 7 2nd Place Slidell Independent Brittany Livaccari Division 7 3rd Place Slidell Independent Brittany Livaccari
2015 Better Newspaper Competition Page 17 of 22
BEST SELF-PROMOTION OUTSIDE OF PRINT Division Place Newspaper Designer(s) Division 1 1st Place American Press Maria Torres Division 1 2nd Place The Advocate Charlene Robert Division 1 3rd Place The Advocate Charlene Robert Division 2 1st Place Livingston Parish News Leesha Gleber Division 2 2nd Place Livingston Parish News Leesha Gleber Division 2 3rd Place Livingston Parish News Leesha Gleber Division 3 1st Place The Ruston Daily Leader Rick Hohlt Division 3 2nd Place The Ruston Daily Leader Will Avery Division 3 3rd Place The Daily News Staff
BEST CLASSIFIED SECTION OR PAGE Division Place Newspaper Division 1 1st Place American Press Division 1 2nd Place The News-Star Division 1 3rd Place The Advocate Division 2 1st Place The Times Division 2 2nd Place The Times Division 2 3rd Place The Ouachita Citizen Division 3 1st Place The Daily News Division 4 1st Place The Plaquemines Gazette Division 4 2nd Place Gonzales Weekly Citizen Division 4 3rd Place West Side Journal Division 5 1st Place St. Francisville Democrat Division 5 2nd Place The St. Helena Echo Division 5 3rd Place Plaquemine Post South
BEST SERVICE AD, NON-RETAIL Division Place Newspaper Designer(s) Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Holly Kay Division 1 2nd Place The News-Star Staff Division 1 3rd Place American Press Maria Torres Division 2 1st Place Daily Comet Shaun Hebert Division 2 2nd Place Daily Comet Shaun Hebert Division 2 3rd Place Daily Comet Liz Arceneaux Division 3 1st Place Beauregard Daily News Torrey Guidry Division 3 2nd Place The Ruston Daily Leader Jeanie McCartney Division 3 3rd Place The Daily News Kim Gerald Division 4 1st Place The Eunice News Misty Gilley Division 4 2nd Place The St. Bernard Voice Brandi Rollo Division 4 3rd Place The St. Bernard Voice Brandi Rollo Division 5 1st Place The Donaldsonville Chief Aanifa Leblanc Division 5 2nd Place Plaquemine Post South Staff Division 5 3rd Place Southwest Daily News Torrey Guidry Division 6 1st Place Point of Vue Magazine Mariella Brochard Division 6 2nd Place Point of Vue Magazine Mariella Brochard Division 6 3rd Place Point of Vue Magazine Mariella Brochard Division 7 1st Place Central City News Woody Jenkins Division 7 2nd Place Central City News Jolice Provost Division 7 3rd Place Central City News Woody Jenkins
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BEST SUCCESS STORY OF AN AD Division Place Newspaper Designer(s) Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Jeff Mendel Division 1 2nd Place The Advocate Christine Jones Division 1 3rd Place The Advocate Brian Golden Division 2 1st Place Daily Comet Liz Arceneaux, Alan Rini Division 3 1st Place The Daily News Kim Gerald Division 3 2nd Place The Daily News Kim Gerald, Liz Mizell Division 3 3rd Place Teche News Mark DeVillier
BEST RETAILER AD Division Place Newspaper Designer(s) Division 1 1st Place The News-Star Staff Division 1 2nd Place The News-Star Staff Division 1 3rd Place American Press Earl Vital Division 2 1st Place The Times Mariella Brochard Division 2 2nd Place Daily Comet Shaun Hebert Division 2 3rd Place Daily Comet Shaun Hebert Division 3 1st Place The Daily News Kim Gerald Division 3 2nd Place The Ruston Daily Leader Adam Hohlt Division 3 3rd Place The Daily News Kim Gerald Division 4 1st Place The Plaquemines Gazette Brandi Rollo Division 4 2nd Place The Plaquemines Gazette Brandi Rollo Division 4 3rd Place The St. Bernard Voice Brandi Rollo Division 5 1st Place St. Francisville Democrat Kristi Lynch Division 5 2nd Place Southwest Daily News Torrey Guidry Division 5 3rd Place Plaquemine Post South Staff Division 6 1st Place Point of Vue Magazine Mariella Brochard Division 6 2nd Place Point of Vue Magazine Mariella Brochard Division 6 3rd Place Acadiana LifeStyle Christy Quebedeaux Division 7 1st Place Slidell Independent Brittany Livaccari Division 7 2nd Place Central City News Jolice Provost Division 7 3rd Place Slidell Independent Brittany Livaccari
2015 Better Newspaper Competition Page 19 of 22
BEST NON-TRADITIONAL USE OF SPACE AD Division Place Newspaper Designer(s) Division 1 1st Place The News-Star Staff Division 1 2nd Place American Press Maria Torres Division 2 1st Place Livingston Parish News Paul Hatton Division 2 2nd Place Daily Comet Shaun Hebert Division 2 3rd Place Livingston Parish News Paul Hatton Division 3 1st Place The Daily News Kim Gerald Division 3 2nd Place The Ruston Daily Leader Adam Hohlt Division 3 3rd Place The Daily News Kim Gerald Division 5 1st Place Plaquemine Post South Staff Division 5 2nd Place Plaquemine Post South Staff Division 6 1st Place Gambit Weekly David Kroll Division 6 2nd Place Gambit Weekly Jason Whittaker Division 6 3rd Place Gambit Weekly Jason Whittaker Division 7 1st Place Central City News Woody Jenkins
BEST SPECIAL SECTION, ADVERTISING Division Place Newspaper Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Division 1 2nd Place The Advocate Division 1 3rd Place The News-Star Division 2 1st Place Daily Comet Division 2 2nd Place The Times Division 2 3rd Place Daily Comet Division 3 1st Place The Ruston Daily Leader Division 3 2nd Place Teche News Division 3 3rd Place The Daily News Division 4 1st Place The Plaquemines Gazette Division 4 2nd Place The St. Bernard Voice Division 4 3rd Place Gonzales Weekly Citizen Division 5 1st Place Plaquemine Post South Division 5 2nd Place The Donaldsonville Chief Division 5 3rd Place Plaquemine Post South Division 6 1st Place Point of Vue Magazine Division 6 2nd Place Acadiana LifeStyle Division 6 3rd Place Acadiana LifeStyle Division 7 1st Place Central City News
INDIVIDUAL FEATURE WRITING Division Place Newspaper Writer(s) Division A 1st Place The Advocate Raymond Partsch III Division B 1st Place The Ville Platte Gazette Raymond Partsch III Division B 2nd Place The News-Examiner Pam Folse Division B 3rd Place The Ville Platte Gazette Elizabeth West Division C 2nd Place Tiger Rag Cody Worsham Division C 3rd Place Tiger Rag Cody Worsham Division C 1st Place Central City News Kim Powers Division C 1st Place Tiger Rag Cody Worsham
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INDIVIDUAL PHOTO BLACK & WHITE Division Place Newspaper Photographer(s) Division A 1st Place The Daily Review Crystal Thielepape Division B 1st Place Southwest Daily News Rodrick Anderson Division B 2nd Place Southwest Daily News Marilyn Monroe Division B 3rd Place Southwest Daily News Marilyn Monroe
INDIVIDUAL PHOTO COLOR Division Place Newspaper Photographer(s) Division A 1st Place The Franklin Sun Monica Huff Division A 2nd Place The Franklin Sun Monica Huff Division A 3rd Place The Daily Review Crystal Thielepape Division B 1st Place The Ville Platte Gazette Elizabeth West Division C 1st Place Central City News Kim Powers
INDIVIDUAL EDITORIAL CARTOON Division Place Newspaper Cartoonist Division A 1st Place The Advocate Walt Handelsman Division A 2nd Place The Advocate Walt Handelsman Division A 3rd Place The Advocate Walt Handelsman Division B 1st Place West Side Journal Cole Williams Division C 1st Place Psychology Times Jake Nelson-Dooley Division C 2nd Place Psychology Times Jake Nelson-Dooley Division D 1st Place Gramblinite Nobel Michael Division D 2nd Place Gramblinite Nobel Michael
BEST OVERALL WEBSITE Division Place Newspaper Designer(s) Division 1 1st Place The News-Star Staff Division 1 2nd Place The Advocate Staff Division 1 3rd Place The Courier Caroline Hilton Division 2 1st Place The Times Staff Division 2 2nd Place The Ouachita Citizen Staff Division 2 3rd Place Daily Comet Caroline Hilton Division 3 1st Place The Daily News Staff Division 4 1st Place West Side Journal Staff Division 5 1st Place Plaquemine Post South Post South Division 5 1st Place Southwest Daily News Staff Division 6 1st Place Psychology Times Staff Division 7 1st Place Central City News Woody Jenkins, Jolice Provost, Candi Lee Division 8 1st Place Xavier Herald Staff Division 8 2nd Place Loyola Maroon Mary Graci
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BEST WEB PROJECT Division Place Newspaper Designer(s) Division 1 1st Place The Courier Staff Division 1 2nd Place The News-Star Sean Isabella Division 1 3rd Place The Town Talk Miranda Klein Division 2 1st Place Daily Comet Chris Heller, Caroline Hilton, Meredith Burns Division 2 2nd Place Daily Comet Jacob Batte, Chris Heller, Caroline Hilton Division 2 3rd Place Daily Comet Staff
BEST MULTIMEDIA ELEMENT-NEWS PACKAGE Division Place Newspaper Designer(s) Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Staff Division 1 2nd Place New Orleans Advocate Jeff Adelson Division 1 3rd Place The News-Star Margaret Croft Division 2 1st Place Daily Comet Caroline Hilton, Maki Somosot, Chris Heller Division 2 2nd Place Daily Comet Caroline Hilton, Abby Tabor, Maki Somosot Division 2 3rd Place Daily Comet Chris Heller, Caroline Hilton Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Ross Dellenger, Dan Swenson, Adv. Digital Desk Division 1 2nd Place The News-Star Margaret Croft Division 1 3rd Place The Courier Caroline Hilton, Chris Heller Division 2 1st Place Daily Comet Caroline Hilton, Chris Heller Division 2 2nd Place Daily Comet Caroline Hilton, Chris Heller Division 2 3rd Place Daily Comet Caroline Hilton Division 7 1st Place Central City News Woody Jenkins
BEST ONLINE ADVERTISING SINGLE AD, STATIC Division Place Newspaper Designer(s) Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Phillip Dequeant Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Phillip Dequeant Division 1 2nd Place The Advocate Phillip Dequeant Division 2 1st Place Daily Comet Staff Division 2 2nd Place Daily Comet Staff Division 2 3rd Place Daily Comet Staff Division 3 1st Place The Daily News Staff Division 4 1st Place West Side Journal Cole Williams Division 4 2nd Place Gonzales Weekly Citizen Staff Division 5 1st Place Plaquemine Post South Staff Division 8 1st Place Loyola Maroon Khadija Aziz
2015 Better Newspaper Competition Page 22 of 22
BEST ONLINE ADVERTISING SINGLE AD, ANIMATED Division Place Newspaper Designer(s) Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Tim Elsea Division 1 2nd Place The Advocate Phillip Dequeant Division 1 3rd Place The Courier Staff Division 2 1st Place Daily Comet Staff Division 2 2nd Place Daily Comet Staff Division 2 3rd Place Daily Comet Staff Division 3 1st Place The Daily News Staff Division 3 2nd Place The Daily News Kim Gerald Division 3 3rd Place The Daily News Kim Gerald Division 4 1st Place Gonzales Weekly Citizen Staff Division 4 2nd Place Gonzales Weekly Citizen Staff Division 4 3rd Place Gonzales Weekly Citizen Staff Division 5 1st Place Plaquemine Post South Staff
BEST ONLINE ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN Division Place Newspaper Designer(s) Division 1 1st Place The News-Star Staff Division 1 2nd Place The News-Star Staff Division 1 3rd Place The Advocate Phillip Dequeant
BEST ONLINE HOUSE AD OR CAMPAIGN Division Place Newspaper Designer(s) Division 1 1st Place The Advocate Phillip Dequeant Division 1 2nd Place The Advocate Phillip Dequeant