PCPC newspapers earn awards at Texas Gulf Coast Press Association Convention
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From Enterprise Staff
The Polk County Enterprise was one of several Polk County Publishing Company-owned newspapers that received recognition in the 2024 Better Newspaper Contest at the 86th annual Texas Gulf Coast Press Association Convention held April 18-20 in Galveston.
The Polk County Enterprise earned first place honors for general excellence, special section, editorial writing and community service. Judges’ comments are in italics.
“Attractive layout and strong pictures with a majority of the articles. Interesting and in-depth articles that flowed well. I especially appreciated all of the highlights of individual students in the sports section,” the judges commented on the entry for general excellence.
The special section that garnered first place was the 2023-2024 Polk County Welcome Guide, a full-color 123-page magazine. “Rather lengthy, but important to the community with great pictures, impressive stories about separate areas, exceptional design.”
First place honors in the editorial writing category were for two editorials written by Editor Emily Banks Wooten. One, in the Jan. 12, 2023 issue, was called “Keep legal notices where they belong,” and the other, in the May 28, 2023 issue, was called “Preserving the past can enhance the future.”
The first-place award for community service – the Farris Block Memorial Community Service Award – was for the newspaper’s coverage of the Alabama-Coushatta Tribe of Texas and its impact on East Texas both economically and educationally. Wooten compiled the coverage which included articles, photos and explanations. “Compelling work of historic significance, a wonderful celebration of diversity in your community.”
The Polk County Enterprise received second place honors for serious columns, humorous columns, feature photos and display advertising.
The two entries entered in the serious columns category were “Harrowing events illustrate steep price of progress” in the March 2, 2023 issue and “Community journalism is not dead yet” in the Sept. 2, 2023 issue, both written by Wooten.
The two entries entered in the humorous columns category were “Like sands through the hourglass … so are the songs of summer” in the June 29, 2023 issue and “I’m thankful for our four-legged family member” in the Nov. 23, 2022 issue, both written by Wooten.
The entries for feature photos were two photos taken by News Director Brian Besch. One, called “Bluebonnets 1, other flowers 0,” was a photo of a field of bluebonnets at the Livingston ISD softball facility that ran in the March 26, 2023 issue. The other, called “Beautiful display of freedom,” was a photo of an American flag backlit by fireworks over Lake Livingston that ran in the July 9, 2023 issue. “Fireworks photos are hard, this one is incredible.”
The second-place award for display advertising was for three advertisements designed and built by Graphic Design Editor Amy Holzworth. One was an advertisement for First State Bank that ran in the Aug. 17, 2023 issue. Another was an advertisement for Bloodworth Law Firm that ran in the Oct. 8, 2023 issue. The final one was an advertisement for Vickery that ran in the Dec. 28, 2023 issue. “This is the hardest category I’ve judged. They are all great.”
The Polk County Enterprise earned five third place awards – for news photos, sports photos, sports coverage, feature writing and news writing.
Besch took the news photos that garnered third place. One, “Tons of cardboard,” was a photo of a flatbed tractor-trailer loaded with bales of cardboard from the Polk County Recycling Center that ran in the April 16, 2023 issue. The other, “Holding the line,” was a photo of a fire off Hwy. 59 South that ran in the Aug. 6, 2023 issue. Entries in the sports coverage and sports photos categories were also created by Besch.
The third-place award for feature writing was for two stories written by Besch – “Coast to coast – Local runs marathons in all 50 states” that ran in the May 4, 2023 issue and “Polk County Youth Rodeo rich in history” that ran in the July 6, 2023 issue. “The marathon article was interesting to read and flowed well.”
The third-place award for news writing was for two stories written by Wooten – “Citizens coalition formed to petition PUCT for rate review” that ran in the Sept. 17, 2023 issue and “‘A great cornucopia of opportunities’ ahead for LISD” that ran in the Oct. 15, 2023 issue. “Citizens coalition story was good, cornucopia was confusing in spots.”
Other newspapers owned by Polk County Publishing Company that placed in the contest were the Tyler County Booster, the San Jacinto News-Times and the Trinity County News-Standard.
The Tyler County Booster won first place for general excellence and special section, second place for serious columns and display advertising and third place for humorous columns and news photos.
The San Jacinto News-Times won third place for serious columns.
The Trinity County News-Standard won second place for general excellence and sports photos and honorable mention for news photos.
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