BOSTON – Providence Business News was recognized for general excellence in both advertising and journalism, receiving first- and second-place awards respectively for specialty publications from the New England Newspaper and Press Association at the 2020 New England Newspaper Convention held Feb. 7-8.
It was the ninth time in the last 12 years that PBN has been recognized for editorial general excellence in the annual better newspaper competition, including first place each of the last two years. PBN was also awarded two first-place awards, two second-place awards and two third-place awards in six separate writing categories in this year’s competition.
In the fall, PBN was also recognized as a “Distinguished Newspaper” among specialty publications by NENPA at the organization’s 2019 New England Newspaper Conference. Since 2010, PBN been recognized as either “Newspaper of the Year” or as one of two runners up six times.
First-place awards for general excellence in this year’s better newspaper competition went to former PBN staff writers Scott Blake and Emily Gowdey-Backus. Staff writer Mary MacDonald and Gowdey-Backus both also earned second- and third-place awards.
The judges included comments for some of the individual categories, in which PBN competed against other specialty publications and large weeklies (with circulations greater than 6,000).
Blake’s first-place award for business/economic reporting was for his piece Is R.I. middle class shrinking? Judges said, “The Providence paper is doing its readers a great service by confirming their worst fears about the local job market and the arrival of the service economy. … The hard numbers provided by the charts are very convincing. There is no comparison to other entrants.”
Blake and Gowdey-Backus took first-place honors in government reporting for a two-part series on the state of the solar and offshore wind industries in Rhode Island. Gowdey-Backus’ Can solar thrive without incentives? and Blake’s Has R.I. lost its first-mover advantage? earned kudos from the judges, who commented that, “When you finish reading … [the series] … you can tell this is a publication that knows its audience.”
Second-place awards went to MacDonald in the general news category for How safe is your workplace? and Gowdey-Backus for her social issues feature, Diversity elusive in construction.
Third-place awards were earned by MacDonald in government reporting for Can city speed development? and by Gowdey-Backus, in education reporting, for Educating teachers is a shrinking business.
Other newspapers in Rhode Island and Bristol County, Mass., winning first-place awards included:
- The Providence Journal – environmental reporting; health reporting; human interest feature; social issues
- The Herald News – government reporting; local election coverage; racial or ethnic issue
- The Standard-Times – sports story; sports section; feature photo; general news photo; portrait photo; spot news photo; photojournalist of the year (Peter Pereira)
- Newport Life Magazine – community/audience involvement; best niche publication
- Taunton Daily Gazette – serious columnist
- Fairhaven Neighborhood News – general news photo
