Chronicle wins awards

Results of the 2020 S.D. Newspaper Association’s Better Newspapers Awards were announced last Thursday with the Custer County Chronicle winning 11, including five first places.
Jason Ferguson won three first places, Ron Burtz one and Down Country Roads magazine a first.
Ferguson won a first for Best Feature Story entitled “Canete siblings on opposite sides of protest.” It was about Rachel Canete joining protestors in Minneapolis, Minn., following the death of George Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer, while her brother, Danny, serves as a Dallas, Texas, law enforcement officer.
Judge’s comments: “A feature story for our time, indeed. Contrasting stories connected through family and community. Well written and compelling storytelling.”
Ferguson won another first place in the Best Local Column category for his Wednesday Morning Quarterback regular column. Judge’s comments: “Saying Goodbye... Great piece about love and loss! And the universal affinity for ‘that car.’ Sadly, we’ve all had one. This kept my attention throughout. Nice show of emotions over time. Great Job.”
His third first place was in the Best Photo Series category featuring a page of photos from the Buffalo Gap Roundup Rodeo. Judge’s comments: “Though I have never been to a rodeo, I thought these photos pretty much covered what I would see at one. The action and layout was great. The photos were cropped well and very clear. This was a tough category to judge, but I was always drawn back to this series. Wonderful job.”
Burtz won first place in the Best Spot News Story category for his coverage of an hours-long standoff between local law enforcement officers and a suicidal county resident who was stopped on Mt. Rushmore Road after allegedly robbing a Rapid City pharmacy at gunpoint. The standoff ended tragically with the man taking his own life. The story was entitled, “Seconds to react, hours to wait.”
Judge’s comments: “This story was the standout among the spot news entries. The timeline and quotes were interwoven well. The map was an added bonus. I am glad you included information about the distraught man. He must have been quite desperate. Glad no one else got hurt. Great job.”
The Chronicle’s fifth first place was for its Down Country Roads magazine publication in the Best Special Publication category. Judge’s comments: “Good content/articles. Ads are well done.”
Ferguson won a second place in the Best Feature Photo competition with a photo entitled “Little Cheerleaders.” Judge’s comments: “The cuteness factor of kids having a good time entertains readers and this shot does it. Good choice. I am sure this young girl put on quite a show! The other girls in the photo didn’t need their faces showing, which draws the viewer to the animated dancer. Good job.”
He won a second place for Best Headline Writing. Judge’s comments: “Clever word play. I liked ‘Guns Holstered’ head.” He won another second place for Best Sports Reporting for a story entitled “Cats rebound, crush Spartans.”  Judge’s comments: “The reporter constructed a very creative lede. A great usage of quotes told the story well.”
Ferguson won a third second place in the Best Sports Series category, “All-Decade Teams.” Judge’s comments: “Obviously, this took some serious leg work to put together. I am sure readers were very interested. An excellent idea. And it’s apparent you have the knowledge and background to pull this off. Good work.”
Burtz won a second place among all weekly and daily South Dakota newspapers in the Best Original Editorial Cartoon category with one titled “Somebody’s getting coal for Christmas.”
The Chronicle took third place in the Best Photo Series category for a full page of photos taken by Norma and Jonathan Najacht and Burtz at Custer’s July 4th celebration. Judge’s comments: “Red, white and blue all over, and the selection of photos showed the fun of the Fourth. Nice layout and a good representation of the events.”
The Hill City Prevailer News won five awards. A second place award was won in the Best Special Section category for its 2020 Progress Edition. Judge’s comments: “Good amount of content and ads. Interesting stories — great way to boost the community during COVID times.”
Prevailer News editor Gray Hughes won the Outstanding Young Journalist award for all the weekly newspapers in the state.
“Gray does it all for us in Hill City and does a great job as editor of the Prevailer News for the past two years,” said Charley Najacht, publisher. “He does all the reporting, photography and pagination of the newspaper. We are fortunate to have such a dedicated, young journalist who truly enjoys what he does for us and the community.”
Reporter Leslie Silver-man won a second place in the Best Local Column category and Hughes won a third place in the same category. Gray also won a third place in the Best Sports Column category.
Another third place was won by Gray and Silverman for Best News Series, “Economic impact of COVID-19 pandemic in Hill City and Keystone.”

 

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