The Record Newspaper staff won 19 awards for work produced in 2021 from national and local journalism contests this summer.
The national Catholic Media Association’s Catholic Press Awards presented the third place award to The Record for best newspaper. The Record competed in the weekly diocesan newspapers with six or more full-time staff division.
The 2022 Press Awards program had roughly 2,700 entries in 472 categories. More than 160 organizations entered this year’s program.
Editor Marnie McAllister won first place for best editorial on a local issue for her editorial “Tornado Recovery from Advent to Easter” published in December. She placed second for best editorial on a national or international issue on “An Economy for All.”
A special supplement on the Office of Multicultural Ministry, designed by The Record with content from the office, placed second for best special supplement. The award recipients are advertising director and designer Jennifer Jenkins, production manager Paul Hohman and OMM communications coordinator Charmein Weathers.
The CMA awarded The Record third place for best special supplement with advertising emphasis for the Graduation Section by Jenkins, Hohman, sales support manager Kathy Estes, sales and production assistant Rachell Rauh and McAllister. The judges commented that the ads complemented the editorial content.
Additionally, reporters Kayla Bennett and Ruby Thomas along with McAllister earned an honorable mention for best coverage of disaster or crisis: tornado recovery coverage. Thomas also earned an honorable mention for best coverage of racial inequities.
In the Society of Professional Journalists Louisville Pro-Chapter contest, The Record earned top awards in the regional/community newspaper division.
Thomas won first place in feature writing for stories about a burial program for the indigent dead, a refugee farmer and a bicycle camp for disabled children. Bennett placed second and third in feature writing.
Thomas placed first in feature/sport photography for a photo of the blessing of a 167-year-old statue of St. Joseph. She also placed first in general news photography for a photo of a Eucharistic procession in downtown Louisville.
In public affairs writing, McAllister placed first for a story about the “web of support” at Nazareth Home during the pandemic lockdown. Bennett placed second.
McAllister received first place in the best news story category for a story about teachers receiving covid vaccines. Thomas placed second.
The Record also swept the continuing coverage category. Bennett, McAllister and Thomas took first for coverage of the response to the December tornadoes; Thomas received second for three stories.
McAllister earned a second-place award in the Metro Louisville division in the editorial writing category for her piece “For the common good.”
