By Alison Berstein, Bulletin Staff
Bulletin photo by Jonathan Polen
The 2017 New England Newspaper Awards featured 10 multiple winners, led by The Berkshire Eagle of Pittsfield, Mass., and the Concord (N.H.) Monitor and its sister Sunday newspaper with four awards.
The Berkshire Eagle won two Publick Occurrences awards and its daily and Sunday editions were both named distinguished newspapers as runners-up in their circulation categories of the newspaper of the year competition. Three of its sister publications also won awards, the Brattleboro (Vt.) Reformer in the Publick Occurrences competition; the Manchester (Vt.) Journal as a distinguished newspaper in its weekly newspaper of the year circulation category; and UpCountry Magazine, based in Pittsfield, Mass., as newspaper of the year in the specialty publications category.
The Monitor won Publick Occurrences awards for both its daily and Sunday editions. The Sunday Monitor was recognized as newspaper of the year in its circulation category, and Ray Duckley, a Monitor columnist, received the Bob Wallack Community Journalism Award.
“This year’s awards once again demonstrate that the newspaper industry remains strong, as evidenced by the number of winners, whose extraordinary work shows the powerful impact they continue to make on people’s lives,” Linda Conway, executive director of the New England Newspaper and Press Association, commented after the awards ceremony.
About 180 people attended the awards luncheon, held during the New England Newspaper Conference Oct. 12 at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Natick, Mass.
The Hartford (Conn.) Courant, The Patriot Ledger of Quincy, Mass., Seven Days of Burlington, Vt., and The Providence (R.I.) Journal each won three awards.
The Courant was named newspaper of the year for its daily and Sunday editions in their circulation categories, and received a Publick Occurrences Award.
The Patriot Ledger was named newspaper of the year in its circulation category and its Sunday edition was honored as a distinguished newspaper. The Patriot Ledger also won a Publick Occurrences Award.
Seven Days won a Publick Occurrences Award and two special awards: the Morley L. Piper First Amendment Award, given to Seven Days and its political editor, Paul Heintz, and the AP Sevellon Brown New England Journalist of the Year award for Heintz.
The Providence Journal received distinguished newspaper honors for its daily and Sunday editions, and a Publick Occurrences Award.
Four newspapers won two awards apiece: the Daily Hampshire Gazette of Northampton, Mass., as newspaper of the year in its circulation category and a Publick Occurrences Award; The MetroWest Daily News of Framingham, Mass., as distinguished newspaper for its daily and Sunday editions; the Sun Journal of Lewiston, Maine, for distinguished newspaper in its circulation category and a Publick Occurrences Award; the Republican-American of Waterbury, Conn., as newspaper of the year for its Sunday edition and for distinguished newspaper for its daily edition in their circulation categories.
Those 10 newspapers won a total of 28 of the 57 awards presented.
The other newspaper of the year winners in their circulation categories were The Daily News of Newburyport, Mass.; The Day of New London, Conn.; the Sunday Eagle-Tribune of North Andover, Mass.; the Mount Desert Islander of Bar Harbor, Maine; the Provincetown (Mass.) Banner; and the Martha’s Vineyard Times of Vineyard Haven, Mass.
The New England Newspaper of the Year awards recognize publications that have made notable strides in the past year, granting awards in 13 categories for both winners and distinguished runners-up.
Publick Occurrences Awards honor the year’s most outstanding journalism by individuals and teams at New England newspapers.
The following are all of the award winners at this year’s ceremony:
Special Awards
Morley L. Piper First Amendment Award:
Seven Days and Paul Heintz, Burlington, Vt
“Advocacy for the passage of Vermont media shield law”
AP Sevellon Brown New England Journalist of the Year:
Paul Heintz, Seven Days, Burlington, Vt.
Allan B. Rogers Editorial Award:
The Gloucester (Mass.) Daily Times, “City must move to restore faith in police, department” by David Olson
Bob Wallack Community Journalism Award:
Ray Duckler, Concord (N.H.) Monitor
Newspaper of the Year
Winners and distinguished runners-up
Weekday newspapers
Circulation less than 8,000
Winner: The Daily News of Newburyport, Mass.
Distinguished: The Milford (Mass.) Daily News
Circulation 8,000-15,000
Winner: Daily Hampshire Gazette of Northampton, Mass.
Distinguished: The Herald News of Fall River, Mass.
The MetroWest Daily News of Framingham, Mass.
Circulation 15,000-25,000
Winner: The Day of New London, Conn.
Distinguished: Sun Journal of Lewiston, Maine
The Berkshire Eagle of Pittsfield, Mass.
Circulation 25,000-35,000
Winner: The Patriot Ledger of Quincy, Mass.
Distinguished: Republican-American of Waterbury, Conn.
Cape Cod Times of Hyannis, Mass.
Circulation 35,000 or more
Winner: The Hartford (Conn.) Courant
Distinguished: The Providence (R.I.) Journal
Sunday newspapers
Circulation less than 18,000
Winner: Sunday Monitor of Concord, N.H.
Distinguished: The MetroWest Daily News of Framingham, Mass.
Sunday Valley News of West Lebanon, N.H.
Circulation 18,000-30,000
Winner: Sunday Eagle-Tribune of North Andover, Mass.
Distinguished: The Sunday Enterprise of Brockton, Mass.
The Berkshire Eagle of Pittsfield, Mass.
Circulation 30,000-45,000
Winner: The Sunday Republican of Waterbury, Conn.
Distinguished: The Patriot Ledger of Quincy, Mass.
Circulation 45,000 or more
Winner: The Hartford (Conn.) Courant
Distinguished: Providence (R.I.) Sunday Journal
Weekly community newspapers
Circulation less than 4,500
Winner: Mount Desert Islander of Bar Harbor, Maine
Distinguished Newspapers: The Cabinet of Milford, N.H.
Andover (Mass.) Townsman
Circulation 4,500-8,000
Winner: Provincetown (Mass.) Banner
Distinguished: The Newtown (Conn.) Bee
Manchester (Vt.) Journal
The Inquirer and Mirror of Nantucket, Mass.
Circulation 8,000 or more
Winner: Martha’s Vineyard Times of Vineyard Haven, Mass.
Distinguished: The Ellsworth (Maine) American
Specialty Publications
Winner: UpCountry Magazine of Pittsfield, Mass.
Distinguished: The Charlotte (Vt.) News
Publick Occurrences Awards
Sun Journal of Lewiston, Maine: “Caged in van No. 1304”
Keene (N.H). Sentinel: “Sounding the Alarm” series
The Daily Item of Lynn, Mass.: “Am I a bigot?”
The Republican of Springfield, Mass.: “Springfield narcotics detective’s threats create chaos in the legal system”
The Patriot Ledger of Quincy, Mass.: “Danger Zone: Pedestrian safety in Quincy”
The New England Center for Investigative Reporting in Boston: “Behind the wall: Suicides in Massachusetts county jails”
The Berkshire Eagle of Pittsfield, Mass.: “The Digital Divide: Broadband in the Berkshires”
The Connecticut Health I-Team of New Haven, Conn.: “Desperate Choices: Giving Up Custody for Care”
The Hartford (Conn.) Courant: “Hartford schools: more separate, still unequal”
Brattleboro (Vt.) Reformer: “Andy’s Journey: The Struggles Through ALS”
Concord (N.H.) Monitor: “Fatal Flaws: An Agency in Crisis”
Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting in Hallowell, Maine: “Single Parents in Poverty: The Crisis No One Will Name”
Providence (R.I.) Business News: “The (Still) Looming Crisis”
Worcester (Mass.) Magazine: “Unresolved: A search for justice”
Daily Hampshire Gazette of Northampton, Mass.: “Under the Table”
Concord (N.H.) Monitor: “Unsilenced: Survivors speak out about sexual assault”
The Berkshire Eagle of Pittsfield, Mass.: “Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art: Building 6 debuts”
The Providence (R.I.) Journal: “Pot & Profit”
Seven Days of Burlington, Vt.: “Death by Drugs”