The Boothbay Register, Wiscasset Newspaper and PenBayPilot.com won 35 Maine Press Association individual and staff awards, and the Pilot’s advertising salesperson, Janis Bunting, received the 2024 Advertising Person of the Year Award. 

The awards ceremony was held Saturday, Oct. 19, at Atlantic Oceanside Hotel and Event Center in Bar Harbor at the 2024 MPA Conference.

All three newspapers competed in the Weekly 2 division, and the Boothbay Register received General Excellence Digital Weekly 2 for its website.

Register reporter Fritz Freudenberger led the staff with seven awards. He won a first place Feature Photo award for a photo of a Windjammer Days cod fish race competitor. His two second place awards include a shared award with Steve Edwards for his Spot News story on the structure fire on Squirrel Island and a People Photo of another Windjammer Days cod fish race competitor. 

He won four third-place awards: Sports News story on the Ultimate Frisbee club; News Headline, Let there be (not so much) light; Environmental Story, Residents prioritize climate change concerns, solutions; and Education Story, Meet Smudge.

Pilot Editorial Director Lynda Clancy won six awards. She won two first place awards – News Video, Heavy damage along coastline as ocean inundates with powerful surf (Jan. 10, 2024 storm); and Sports Video, Keen competition, fast times at Camden’s 2024 U.S. National Toboggan Championships. 

She also won two second- and two third-place awards. Her second-place awards included a Features/Lifestyle Video, Welcoming the New Year in Rockport, Maine, with old friends; and a Political Story, Thomaston citizens create park ‘in perpetuity.’ 

Her third-place awards were for an Investigative Report, Maine’s plan to site wind power port on Sears Island draws swift response, with support and opposition; and an Analysis, ‘Perfect public safety storm’ at Knox 911 call center; ‘closure’ yet to be defined.

Wiscasset Assistant Editor Susan Johns garnered four awards. She won a first-place award for her Features/Lifestyle Video on the Wiscasset Easter egg hunt. 

Johns also won a second-place award for her News Video, Legion Post 54 gives to Wiscasset causes. She was also presented with two third-place awards: News Video, Dig into Wormfest June 8; and Editorial, Make it harder.

The Register’s Arts and Entertainment Editor Lisa Kristoff won two first-place and one third-place awards. Her first-place awards were for a Critic’s Award for her story ‘Working Maine’ celebrates Mainers and their livelihoods; and a Feature Headline, ‘Mainely Nude’: A compelling body of work.

Steve Edwards, production lead and part-time editorial contributor, also won three awards. He won two first-place awards: Scenic Photo, Schooner Eastwind; and Best Supplement Cover, Dining Guide 2023. 

As mentioned above, he shared a second-place award with Fritz Freudenberger in Spot News Story on the structure fire on Squirrel Island.

Register reporter Bill Pearson won a first-place award for his Sports Headline, Harkins capping senior year with strong ‘Finn-ish’; and a second-placeaward for his Sports Headline, Wolverines ‘Landin’ Class D semis on Shirey’s 5 3-pointers.

The Register staff won a first place, Supplement/Special Section, for Summertime 2023; and a second-place, Community Engagement Idea, Holiday cards to the community.

The Pilot won five additional awards. Sarah Thompson took first place for her Spot News story, Search for overdue fisherman leads to island rescue over rough terrain. 

Chris Wolf won first place for his Food Story/Feature, Handing over the enduring, and endearing, legacy of Marriner’s in Camden to new owners. 

Kathleen Norton took second place for in the Opinion/Columnist category for her piece, ‘Yours are mine, too.’ 

Erica Thoms won third place for her Courts Story, Plaintiffs’ second motion to dismiss Belfast 8 civil suit granted with prejudice, and costs awarded to 8 defendants.

Register Editor Kevin Burnham won a first-place award for his Sports Profile, Boothbay Region Youth Basketball has successful first year.

News contributor Jane Carpenter won third place for her Health Story, End of SNAP COVID supplement creates $180M loss this year for businesses.

The Bangor Daily News, The Ellsworth American, The Star-Herald, and the Sun Journal Sunday edition have been honored by the Maine Press Association (MPA) for General Excellence in print newspapers. 

The Maine Monitor and Boothbay Register/Wiscasset Newspaper took top honors for digital General Excellence in the MPA’s Better Newspaper Contest.

 The awards were presented Saturday night at Atlantic Oceanside Hotel & Conference Center in Bar Harbor, concluding a day of programming and networking for reporters, photographers, journalists, advertising staff, and designers throughout the state.  

Naomi Schalit and John Christie, founders of the Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting, which publishes The Maine Monitor; and Larry Mahoney, the face of sports at the Bangor Daily News for more than 50 years, were selected by the MPA’s Hall of Fame Committee as the 2024 inductees. 

In the General Excellence competition for print newspapers, the Bangor Daily News was judged the best daily in Maine while the Sun Journal Sunday edition was chosen as the weekend Newspaper of the Year. 

The contest judges, who hailed from the Nebraska Press Association, wrote of the Bangor Daily News: “Maine readers are lucky to have such high-quality journalism at their disposal. The Daily News uses catchy headlines, compelling ledes, well-designed and well-written stories that tell the story from the perspective of those most affected….”

“What a great newspaper!” said the judges about the Sun Journal Sunday edition. “In a category with multiple top-notch entries, the Sun Journal stood out for its clean design, focus on local news, and the unique topics it covered. The “B” section tipped the scales: Colorful stories that even caught an outsider’s attention.” 

In the Weekly 1 division, for newspapers with less than 2,000 print circulation, The Star-Herald of Presque Isle took top prize. “Excellent emphasis on utilizing news that has the biggest impact on the community in prominent positions in the layout. Paper takes the reader on a logical journey each issue with combination of news and opinion.”

The Weekly 2 winner was The Ellsworth American. Judges said: The front page is visually appealing, with engaging photos that immediately draw the reader in… The writers demonstrate a flair for storytelling, with headlines that are both captivating and well-formatted… Overall, this is an exceptional publication. Our team unanimously agrees that it deserves honors for its high-quality presentation and content.”

J. Craig Anderson, of the Harpswell Anchor, won the Freedom of Information first-place award in the Weekly division, while Rose Lundy and Samantha Hogan, of The Maine Monitor, took top honors in the Daily/Weekend division.

Sawyer Loftus, of the Bangor Daily News, was named the Journalist of the Year and Janis Bunting, of the Penobscot Bay Pilot, was the Advertising Person of the Year.

Will Robinson, of Penobscot Bay Press, won the Bob Drake Young Writer’s Award, and Mary Delamater, of the Sun Journal, was honored by the MPA as the Unsung Hero of the Year.

A complete list of 2024 award winners will be posted next week on the MPA’s website.The Maine Press Association (MPA), founded in 1864, is one of the oldest professional news organizations in the nation. Learn more at www.mainepressassociation.org.