Blade has ‘excellent’ showing in Excellence in Journalism Awards
The 2017 All Ohio Excellence in Journalism Awards , presented by the Press Club of Cleveland, were announced on June 2, at the House of Blues in Cleveland.
The Blade winners were:
Andy Morrison – first place, Best Photographer in Ohio
Jeff Basting – first place, Single Page design, Broadsheet, for his Big Foot/Sasquatch Grassman Yeti page. Judge’s comments – “It’s the art that draws the reader in to this interesting report. The artist’s conception of Bigfoot is more frightening than the lore. Well. done.”
Kirk Walters – first place, Single Cartoon, for his Ohio State Attack editorial cartoon. Judge’s comments: “Beautifully done. It is tough to capture tragedy in a way that does not turn people off. This was successful and elicits strong emotions.”
Keith Burris – first place, Single Editorial for his piece challenging Kasich to save Lake Erie
– second place, Best in Ohio, Columnist
– third place, for Best in Ohio, Editorial
Lauren Lindstrom – second place, Investigative, for her Racing for Recovery: 2-part series examining two years of drug overdose calls in Lucas County. Judge’s comments: The opioid epidemic is not only claiming lives but straining the resources of those trying to save them. This investigative work lays out the story in a way that should wake up the community and lead to more solutions to treat this epidemic.”
Blade staff – second place, Breaking News: Ongoing Coverage, for the abduction and murder of college student Sierah Joughin.
Blade Staff – second place, Newspaper Website
Alexandre Mester – third place, General News: Multiple Stories-Same Topic, for Homeless woman gets home, still keeps her dog, Cow. Judge’s comments: “I liked this series because it was unexpected. I’ve read plenty of stories about homelessness over the years, but I’ve never read about how having a pet both provides safety and makes it harder to get services. It would be easy to dismiss this as just another dog story, but the reporter went deeper and took the subject’s plight seriously….It shows unconventional, enterprising thinking, which I’d like to see more often in news coverage these days.”
Nick Piotrowicz – third place, Sports, for his piece on MAC schools’ cost of athletics up 75% in last 10 years. Judge’s comments: “Excellent, in-depth reporting and legwork that provides a clear, well-structured examination of an under-the-radar issue. Fact-finding sports journalism that informs and, most likely, surprises those who read it.”