Herald-Leader named top newspaper in KY awards, staff members receive over 30 accolades
The Herald-Leader was named the top newspaper in its division Friday night by the Kentucky Press Association for coverage of reproductive rights, sporting events, sexual abuse allegations among educators, natural disasters, state politics and other noteworthy stories in 2022.
Staff members won 32 individual awards, and crime and courts reporter Taylor Six, formerly of the Richmond Register, was given the Jon Fleischaker Freedom of Information Award for an investigation into the Valley View Ferry. The Herald-Leader was awarded first place in General Excellence ahead of the Louisville Courier-Journal and Bowling Green Daily News.
“2022 was a year of strong journalism for the Herald-Leader as we continued to add newsroom staff and new digital products for our readers. We’re proud to serve this state and the Lexington community, and we’re thrilled that work was recognized by KPA,” Executive Editor and General Manager Peter Baniak said.
Columnist Linda Blackford was awarded first in the Best Editorial Page and Best Editorial Writer categories for topics ranging from election deniers to gun control, with judges noting her “extended variety of opinions.”
In sports, writers Mark Story, Cameron Drummond and John Clay swept the Best Sports Column category, earning first, second and third, respectively, and Ben Roberts’s story on former University of Kentucky men’s basketball player and radio host Mike Pratt’s memorial was named Best Sports Story of the year. In the same category, Story and Drummond saw second and third place awards.
The newspaper’s digital work received accolades as well. Audience growth producer Andrew Henderson won second place for a Twitter Moment highlighting the Eastern Kentucky flooding in July, and third place for hosting an online forum with reporters John Cheves and Austin Horn about the General Assembly session.
Visual journalists Ryan Hermens and Silas Walker swept the Best Video category. Hermens’s video on a mullet competition and the “Wilmore Lawnmower Brigade” were award first and third, with Walker taking home second for visual coverage of the Western Kentucky tornadoes. Hermens received a total of 11 awards, the highest number among the staff.
Hermens and Walker also won multiple news and sports photo awards, with judges praising the Best Sports Picture category particularly as filled with “outstanding work.”
“Our staff is filled with passionate and dedicated journalists who do so much every day to document Lexington and Kentucky. To see their work recognized by an outside group is extremely rewarding,” Managing Editor Lauren Gorla said. “Thank you to our readers and subscribers who help ensure that we’ll be around to tell these stories for many more years to come.”
The full list of awards can be found below:
FIRST PLACE
Linda Blackford, Best Editorial Writer
Linda Blackford, Best Editorial Page
Alex Acqusito, Best General News Story
Mark Story, Best Sports Columnist
Ben Roberts, Best Sports Story
Beth Musgrave and Valarie Honeycutt Spears, Best Investigative Story or Series
Ryan Hermens, Best Video
Ryan Hermens, Best General News Picture
Ryan Hermens and Silas Walker, Best Picture Essay
Silas Walker, Best Sports Picture
Staff, Best Special Section/Best Sports Special Section
Peter Baniak, Best Headline Writer
SECOND PLACE
Staff, Best Breaking News Coverage
Cam Drummond, Best Sports Columnist
Mark Story, Best Sports Story
Andrew Henderson, Best Use of Social Media
Silas Walker, Best Video
Ryan Hermens, Best Feature Picture
Ryan Hermens, Best Picture Essay
Ryan Hermens, Best Sports Picture
Ryan Hermens, Best Sports Picture Essay
Linda Blackford, Best Headline Writer
THIRD PLACE
John Clay, Best Sports Columnist
Cam Drummond, Best Sports Story
Austin Horn, Best Enterprise or Analytical Story
Staff, Best Ongoing Coverage
Andrew Henderson, Austin Horn and John Cheves, Best Use of Social Media
Ryan Hermens, Best Video
Ryan Hermens, Best General News Picture
Ryan Hermens, Silas Walker and Alex Slitz, Best Picture Essay
Michael Yparrea, Brian Simms and Ryan Hermens, Best Front Page
Lauren Gorla, Best Headline Writer