From Our Archive
March 17, 1997
Winners of
the 1996 Scripps Howard
Foundation National Journalism Awards
CINCINNATI -- The Scripps Howard
Foundation today announced the winners of its 1996 National
Journalism Awards.
Three newspapers,
three television stations, two radio stations and six
individuals were recognized for their efforts in 14 categories
ranging from human interest writing and public service to
support of literacy and defense of the First Amendment. Bronze
plaques and $41,000 in cash prizes will be awarded at a
banquet hosted by The E. W. Scripps Company on March 26 in
Cincinnati.
"The work we're
honoring has risen to the top," said Judith G. Clabes,
president and CEO of the Scripps Howard Foundation. "It's the
best of American journalism in 1996. It shed light on unlikely
heroes, the mood of voters, the threat to a state's forests,
the dangers of medical waste, the cover-up of harassment
settlements, the folly of a city's zoning laws, the unhealed
sore' of America's race relations, the political mischief of
the independent counsel and so much more."
Added William R. Burleigh, president and CEO of The
E.W. Scripps Company, "The journalists we're honoring practice
journalism in the right way. We at Scripps salute them for
their singular accomplishments in improving and enriching our
lives. We pay tribute to them, we dedicate ourselves anew to
what is good and noble about this made-in-America calling of
journalism."
The winners are:
HUMAN INTEREST
WRITING
John Lang, Scripps Howard
News Service
Lang will receive
$2,500 and the Ernie Pyle Award plaque.
Noted for his
stories of universal appeal, Lang's writing style blends facts
with feelings. Last fall, his reporting duties took him across
the country where he spoke with Americans about election
issues. The journey resulted in spontaneous, grassroots
articles, which were published by newspapers nationwide.
Judges said: "Lang writes in a clean, entertaining style that
manages to capture emotion and substance in relatively brief
pieces, much as did Ernie Pyle."
EDITORIAL
WRITING
Michael G. Gartner, The
Daily Tribune, Ames, Iowa
Gartner will
receive $2,000 and the Walker Stone Award plaque.
Gartner won for his hard-hitting daily commentaries all
of which revolve around a city, county or state issue. In
1996, his essay-style, solution-oriented editorials ranged
from lap dancing to town financial issues. Judges said:
"Gartner raises the mundane to high drama with incisive
reporting, enticing humor and occasional rhetorical flourish,
leaving his readers to his call to action, precisely when they
are ready to receive it."
PUBLIC SERVICE
Under 100,000 Circulation
Maureen Magee, Ventura County
(Calif.)
Star Magee will receive $2,500 and a Roy W.
Howard plaque.
In a
never-before-told report, Magee profiled California's
"nonpublic school" for troubled children. Instead of
education, these for-profit schools were dishing out
exploitation and abuse and costing taxpayers nearly $250
million a year in state funding. Judges said: "Magee asked why
it costs more to educate and house a troubled child for a year
than it did to send a student to Yale or Harvard. She found
warehousing of children while the public paid staggering
amounts per child."
PUBLIC SERVICE
Over 100,000 Circulation
Alison Young, Detroit Free Press
Young will receive $2,500 and a Roy W. Howard
plaque.
Young launched an
investigation into Michigan's more than $1-billion-a-year
nursing home business after finding similarities in the deaths
of five elderly residents. The five-part series documented
hundreds of violations and showed a home-by-home comparison.
Judges said: "A benchmark investigation. Compelling and
thorough but not sensationalized. It's a textbook example of
what can result when one reporter asks, Why?'"
ENVIRONMENTAL
REPORTING under 100,000 circulation
Ken Ward, Jr., The
Charleston (W.Va.) Gazette
Ward will receive
$2,000 and an Edward J. Meeman Award plaque.
Two of Ward's recent reporting projects earned him a
1996 Meeman Award and recognition as a finalist in the same
category a rare feat in the Scripps Howard Foundation annual
competition. His winning entry documented a local hospital's
efforts to open a new medical waste incinerator in a
neighborhood that was bustling with renewal. Judges said:
"Ward's aggressive reporting revealed that the quietly
approved project had benefited from errors made by regulators
in the permit process. Compelling journalism."
ENVIRONMENTAL
REPORTING over 100,000 circulation
Mobile (Ala.) Register
The Register will
receive $2,000 cash and an Edward J. Meeman Award plaque,
recognizing the work of Bill Finch, Sam Hodges, Sean Reilly
and Dewey English.
In a 24-page
special report, the Mobile Register took an in-depth look at
the forestry industry Alabama's largest manufacturing
employer. The newspaper revealed the state was overcutting and
undermanaging its vital resource, with profound effects on the
economy. Judges said: "The Register combines exacting
reporting, superb story-telling and a grasp of detail to paint
a mixed picture of the state's environmental profile: The
current timber boomlet has re-invigorated pockets of Alabama.
But peril resides just below the surface."
FIRST AMENDMENT
Honolulu Star-Bulletin
The newspaper will
receive $2,500 and an Edward Willis Scripps Award plaque.
In a six-day special report, the Star-Bulletin detailed
how Hawaii's government is increasingly denying public access
to information. The afternoon newspaper took the issue out of
the courtroom and into the community. As a result, openness
became an issue in the local elections. Judges said: "The
Star-Bulletin's special report sounded the alarm, explained
what was at stake and led the way to critical and much-needed
reform."
BROADCAST/CABLE
JOURNALISM
Small
Market Television
WWSB-TV, Sarasota, Fla.
The station will
receive $2,000 and a Jack R. Howard Award plaque.
Sarasota, a town populated by many retirees,
experienced its first gang-related murder last July. In a
four-part series, WWSB examined the emerging gangs and
educated the community, without resorting to sensationalism.
Judges said: "Very thorough in its research and presentation.
The program represents a major commitment of time and
resources for this smaller station."
Large
Market Television
WCPO-TV,
Cincinnati
The station will
receive $2,000 and a Jack R. Howard Award
plaque.
WCPO was ahead of
the news, investigating airport security months before the
crash of TWA Flight 800. The station revealed that despite the
appearance of security, the flying public is very vulnerable
to terrorist activity. Judges said: "Clear and convincing
evidence of a very serious problem which could affect airports
all over the world. Reporting was thorough and understandable
with high quality production values."
Small
Market Radio
KNAU-FM, Flagstaff, Ariz.
The station will
receive $2,000 and a Jack R. Howard Award plaque.
Public radio station KNAU- FM tackled the sensitive
topic of racial tensions in Arizona's Indian Country. An
hour-long documentary and five subsequent reports explored the
economic, social and political implications. Judges said: "A
well-produced, organized examination of a significant regional
issue. It grabbed our attention with real people and real
voices."
Large Market
Radio
WCBS Radio,New York
The station will
receive $2,000 and a Jack R. Howard Award plaque.
Within moments of the TWA Flight 800 explosion, WCBS
launched its helicopter and had a dozen reporters on the
scene. That night and for most of the next day, WCBS aired
wall-to-wall coverage using a myriad of angles. Judges said:
"The ability to provide outstanding coverage of the big
breaking story is the hallmark of a great news organization.
WCBS provided that conclusively."
LITERACY
Newspaper
Division
The Gaston Gazette,
Gastonia, N.C.
Service in support of
literacy the
Gazette will receive $2,500 and will designate a literacy
program in its community to receive a $5,000 grant from the
Scripps Howard Foundation. The newspaper will also receive a
Charles E. Scripps Award plaque.
The Gazette was
recognized for a multi-faceted approach to fostering reading
in its community. The newspaper coupled traditional newspaper
resources stories, photographs and editorials with
non-traditional ways of spreading the word. Judges said: "The
Gazette clearly showed the problems, then the solutions and
then the payoff. We're very impressed by the scope of work."
Broadcast/Cable
Division
WTHR-TV, Indianapolis
Service in support
of literacy WTHR will receive $2,500 and will designate a
literacy program in its community to receive a $5,000 grant
from the Scripps Howard Foundation. The station will also
receive a Charles E. Scripps Award plaque.
Last January, WTHR-TV symbolically "signed off" the air
for two hours and encouraged viewers to read with family and
friends. This dramatic gesture inaugurated the station's
year-long community service program, which generated more than
1,000 calls to the literacy helpline. Judges said: "A huge
undertaking! The work behind the end product really showed
WTHR's dedication to finding solutions."
COLLEGE CARTOONING
Jody D. Lindke, University
of Nevada
Lindke will receive
$2,000 and the Charles M. Schulz Award plaque.
A first-year graduate student, Lindke was recognized
for her multi-panel cartoons, known as Nicnup, which appear in
the university newspaper, Sagebrush. Judges said: "Wonderfully
creative. Lindke demonstrates real understanding of the visual
and verbal interplay."
List of finalists
and judges follows.
Pictures of winners
available electronically. Contact Nate Parsons,
202-408-2723
FINALISTS AND
JUDGES HUMAN INTEREST WRITING FINALIST: Sean Kirst, The
Syracuse (N.Y.) Newspapers
JUDGES: Rick
Rodriguez, managing editor, The Sacramento (Calif.) Bee; Kathy
Silverberg, executive editor, Times Daily, Florence, Ala.; and
Dan K. Thomasson, vice president/news, Scripps Howard
Newspapers and editor, Scripps Howard News Service
EDITORIAL WRITING FINALIST: N. Don Wycliff, Chicago
Tribune
JUDGES: Caroline
Brewer, editorial writer, The Record, Hackensack, N.J.; Ernie
Gates, gathering editor, Daily Press, Newport News, Va.; and
Alan M. Horton, senior vice president/publishing division, The
E.W. Scripps Company
PUBLIC SERVICE
FINALIST--UNDER 100,000: None FINALISTS--OVER 100,000: Paul
Pinkham, Nancy Visser and Mark Middlebrook, The Florida
Times-Union
JUDGES: Larry
Olmstead, managing editor, The Miami Herald; Louise Seals,
managing editor, Richmond (Va.) Times-Dispatch; and Vince
Vawter, editor and president, The Evansville (Ind.) Courier
ENVIRONMENTAL REPORTING FINALISTS--OVER 100,000: John
McQuaid, Bob Marshall, Mark Schleifstein and Ted Jackson, The
(New Orleans) Times-Picayune; and Lynda Mapes, The
Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Wash.
FINALIST--UNDER
100,000: Ken Ward, Jr., The Charleston (W.Va.) Gazette
JUDGES: Caesar Andrews, editor, Gannett News Service;
Pam Luecke, editor and vice president, Lexington (Ky.)
Herald-Leader; and Harry Moskos, editor, The Knoxville (Tenn.)
News-Sentinel
FIRST AMENDMENT
FINALISTS: Robert Miraldi, Poughkeepsie (N.Y.) Journal; and
Marin Independent Journal, Novato, Calif.
JUDGES:
Louis D. Boccardi, president and CEO, The Associated Press;
Loren Ghiglione, James M. Cox Jr. Professor of Journalism,
Emory University; and Sandra Mims Rowe, editor, The Oregonian
BROADCAST/CABLE JOURNALISM FINALIST--SMALL MARKET
RADIO: None FINALIST--LARGE MARKET RADIO: WSM, Nashville,
Tenn.
FINALIST--SMALL MARKET TV/CABLE: None
FINALISTS--LARGE MARKET TV/CABLE: WTVJ-TV, Miami; and
WPTV-TV, West Palm Beach, Fla.
JUDGES: Mike
Cavender, vice president/news, WTSP-TV, St. Petersburg, Fla.,
and Chair, Radio/Television News Directors Association; James
C. King, general manager, WVXU-FM, Cincinnati; and Eric Ober,
president and CEO, Cinetel Productions, Knoxville, Tenn.
LITERACY FINALIST--NEWSPAPER: None
FINALIST--BROADCAST/CABLE: KVSF-FM, Santa Fe, N.M.
JUDGES: Lisa Cooney, news anchor, WLWT-TV, Cincinnati;
Paul Knue, editor, The Cincinnati Post/The Kentucky Post; and
Buck Ryan, director, The School of Journalism &
Telecommunication, University of Kentucky
COLLEGE CARTOONIST
FINALISTS: Darrin Bell, University of California; David J.
Kellett, University of California San Diego; and Brian
Fairrington, Arizona State University
JUDGES: Lucy
Caswell, associate professor and curator, Graphic and
Photographic Arts Research Library, The Ohio State University;
Al Roker, weather and feature reporter, NBC News, "The Today
Show;" and Charles M. Schulz, creator of PEANUTS.
Contact: Sue Porter, The E.W. Scripps Company, 513-977-3030