Excellence endures at The Examiner

The Examiner’s enduring endeavor to keep a watchful eye on stories that most impact its readers was recognized Oct. 23 at the Press Club of Southeast Texas’ 30th Annual Excellence in Media Awards, where the paper earned 35 honors, more than any other local newspaper.

Those trophies perpetuate a tradition of top-notch journalism that has earned The Examiner countless accolades selected by panels of writers, editors, professors and publishers across the country. At the Press Club’s virtual ceremony, The Examiner’s staff was honored with 35 awards, spanning nearly every available category including: news stories, business stories, investigative stories, faith-based stories, columns, special reports, page layout, writing portfolios, headline writing, magazine excellence and COVID-19 coverage.

The Examiner’s writers earned more individual awards than any others in Southeast Texas, with Managing Editor Jennifer Johnson and Business Journal Editor Sharon Brooks each notching nine titles, Staff Writer B. Scott McLendon winning seven and Sports and Entertainment Editor Chad Cooper claiming five.

As an investigative newspaper, The Examiner was built on in-depth coverage of corrupt tax-funded entities taking advantage of the populous. The Examiner remains Southeast Texas’ premier outlet for such reports – as evidenced by the paper claiming three out of four investigative awards on offer at the annual press club awards.

Johnson earned first place for her coverage of Jefferson County inmates’ COVID plight during the height of the pandemic, speaking to incarcerated sources through an inmate-smuggled cell phone and earning recognition for giving a platform to voices that might normally go unheard. She earned third for her story detailing the resignation of a county-appointed board member under fire for approving her daughter’s pay raise. McLendon earned an honorable mention for shining a light on a small-town mayor’s tight-lipped refusal to sign a document that would allow a family to remain on their Harvey-flooded property until they could afford a rebuild.

Additionally, Johnson earned first place for her reporting portfolio, with the judges proclaiming, “Great gets illustrate how an ear to the ground yields great stories.” Johnson also won third place in the faith-based story category, as well as third for best news story in the daily division.

Brooks earned first for magazine news story, as well as first and second place in the business story competition. Further additions to her awards include third for special reports on the need for convalescent plasma during the pandemic, as well as an honorable mention in the same category for coverage of three local men charged with cybercrimes against women. She also earned an honorable mention for her reporting portfolio.

McLendon won first place in the news story competition, non-daily division, for coverage of Lumberton’s efforts to keep crime-ridden game rooms from its city limits. Additionally, he won first place in the headline-writing competition for his “Children of the Coronavirus” story about babies born during the pandemic. He also earned an honorable mention in the same category, while splitting second and third with Johnson.

Publisher and CEO Don Dodd earned four trophies for editorials, claiming second and third, and for overall excellence in special supplements/promotional publications, where he claimed first and second along with Brooks.

The Examiner’s Kevin Clay claimed three trophies and five total awards at the annual event, sweeping first through third in the news page design competition, earning first in feature page design and winning first for magazine layout design. Brittany Chaney, of The Examiner’s graphics department, won second for magazine layout design.  Columnist Stephen ‘doc’ Watson won first, third and an honorable mention in the general column category.

A nationally-awarded newspaper

The Examiner’s local awards come just two months after the paper won 13 awards at the National Newspaper Association’s (NNA) 2021 Better Newspaper Contest, where a panel of journalism professionals from across the nation come together to recognize the United States’ best newspapers, reporters and editors. The panel scrutinizes and criticizes tens of thousands of entries each year.

In August, the NNA, an organization with more than 2,300 associated newspapers nationwide, named The Examiner the second place in the nation for Overall Excellence. The judge in the category called it an “excellent newspaper,” adding, “It hit all the right buttons on the score sheet.”

Publisher Don Dodd won third in the nation in the editorial competition for his criticism of U.S. Representative Randy Weber and his inaction during the onset of COVID-19. A judge wrote, “This is a strong editorial questioning the actions of a member of congress on an important community health issue. It is well written and informs the readers about someone they will likely be asked to reject or choose on their ballot.”

Headline writing is an essential editorial tool, and effective headlines must catch the reader’s attention, garner interest in the subject matter discussed in the articles they represent, and not be inaccurate or misleading. Before sweeping the category locally, The Examiner outperformed all other competitors from around the country in headline writing with succinct introductions inducing readers’ interest.

Before The Examiner nearly swept the local investigative reporting category, Johnson received second place for Investigative/In-depth reporting nationally for her deep dive into the sale of the Ford Park athletic complex. In her story “Ford Park sale goes awry,” Johnson explores issues with the company proposing to purchase the county-owned complex and its representative, who have still failed to produce funds promised to complete the deal – a deal that still has yet to be fulfilled.

The judge, evidently curious about and dubious of the still-unresolved deal, wrote, “The community is lucky to have this detailed newspaper coverage of a behind-the-scenes deal to buy a govt-owned property… Great work talking to previous clients of the bidder. Loved the ‘show me the money’ quote and am surprised the bidder submitted the 2% required. Did the check bounce?”

Brooks received second place for Best Business Feature and second for Best Business Story for “Not just business as usual,” an Examiner story written at the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. Brooks shared information about local business closures and gave the public a rundown of where they could go to get needed supplies as businesses struggled to maintain inventory.

Experienced, professional journalists from around the country who read The Examiner and judge the national and local newspaper awards continue to honor The Independent Voice of Southeast Texas’ accurate, diligent and important news coverage.

The Examiner is published every week on Thursday. Subscribe by calling (409) 832-1400 or visiting the website, www.theexaminer.com. The Southeast Texas Business Journal is a monthly publication and may be found at www.beaumontbusinessjournal.com or in businesses throughout Southeast Texas.