By:Angela Marshall
Papers net 12 honors from NYPA Better Newspaper Contest
It was a banner weekend and a banner year for the Herald as the community newspaper group heard its name called 12 times at awards ceremonies in Albany last weekend for the New York Press Association 2000 Better Newspaper Contest for journalism excellence.
Among the awards the Herald carted home were six first-place honors, for community leadership, crime coverage, in-depth reporting, obituary writing, environmental coverage and advertising.
The Herald papers placed sixth among newspaper groups statewide, winning more awards than all other Nassau County newspapers combined.
One-hundred-seventy-four newspapers submitted a total of 3,211 entries to the annual Better Newspaper Contest.
"It's always nice to be recognized for good work," said Herald publisher Cliff Richner. "I think the rewards are a reflection of the Herald's philosophy regarding local coverage. We feel that what happens within a local community is the most important news to the people who live there - and we treat that news importantly. At the Herald, we focus on the local issues that have the greatest impact on our readers' daily lives. I think it's this overall philosophy that the judges recognized.
"I'm particularly proud of the well-deserved recognition received by editors Scott Brinton, Jeff Lipton, Angela Marshall and Denis Devine. They each work very hard at what they do and it shows.
"I also congratulate our Rookie of the Year, Rebecca Shalomoff, on a great start to what promises to be a brilliant career in journalism," the publisher concluded.
"When I joined the Herald at the end of September, I knew there was something special about it," said Gary Schwartz, the group's executive editor. "Now I know what that is. These papers are staffed by journalists who are true professionals, people who are dedicated to much more than just producing newspapers each week. They work to produce newspapers that matter, that make a difference in people's lives."
Crime coverage gets top honor
The Nassau Herald, which covers the Five Towns, took home first place for Coverage of Crime/Police/Courts. Stories were written by Editor Jeff Lipton.
Judges especially liked his stories on a Hewlett High School football player arrested and charged with assault, a con man hitting up Lawrence residents for contributions to a phony AIDS walk and a stand-off outside of a home in Cedarhurst last year.
Judges said, "Solid, thorough reporting on criminal activity - writing about violent crime without sensationalizing."
The Nassau Herald was also awarded second place for its 75th anniversary issue, in the category Historical or Anniversary Editions. Keith Grant, who is now Long Beach Herald editor, wrote the bulk of the material.
"Reproducing details of past issues (instead of just reproducing the front page) make this issue," judges said. "I'm sure readers enjoyed the 'bathing suits half off' ad as well as other tidbits."
Rebecca Shalomoff of the Nassau Herald earned second place as Rookie Reporter of the Year, after being on the job for only three months. Rebecca, a May 2000 graduate of Columbia University, started with the Herald in October.
Shalomoff's coverage of schools and news, as well as her features and profiles of people living in the Five Towns impressed the judges. "Shalomoff has a great flair for feature writing. Her ledes are creative, entertaining and well thought out," judges said.
Alfred Doblin, a former executive editor of the Herald who continues as a weekly op-ed columnist, was also a winner. He was awarded second place in Best Humor Column.
Judges said, "Alfred Doblin starts his column off well and finishes even better."
Long Beach Herald takes 2 firsts
The Long Beach Herald received two first-place awards this year.
The awards ceremony started off on the right foot for the Herald staff when it was announced that the Long Beach Herald had taken first place in Coverage of the Environment, which included a look at the Army Corps plan for beach erosion on Long Island.
Judges said, "[Denis] Devine's look at environmental issues has a nice balance of economics, lifestyle, health and human impacts. Also finds the effect on human beings. Puts environmental issues in balanced perspective."
Former Long Beach Herald editor Devine also took first place for Best Obituaries. During his time at the Herald, Devine always felt privileged to be able to write a final tribute to Long Beach citizens. Included in the award-winning obituaries was one on Hannah Komanoff, a political pioneer in Nassau County who played a key role in shaping the modern city of Long Beach. She was the only female member of the County Board of Supervisors. She served from 1974-85.
Esther McKenna, former editor of the Rockville Centre Herald and continuing freelance writer for the Merrick Herald, was awarded third place in this category for her obituaries on former Rockville Centre spokesman Jim Heaney and Cardinal John O'Connor.
Rockville Centre was also a first-place winner, for In-depth Reporting. Angela Marshall, current editor of both the Rockville Centre and Baldwin Heralds, and Christine Pearsall, a former intern, were honored for their story on the dangers of aging oil tanks leaking underground.
Judges said, "This article goes to show that even in in-depth reporting, quality is more important than quantity. The reporters covered an interesting and important topic and made it easy to understand."
Community leadership lauded
The Bellmore Herald won first place for Community Leadership, considered one of the contest's most coveted honors.
Editor Scott Brinton wrote the majority of the stories, which covered the effects Nassau County cutbacks were having on local agencies. Robert Remler, reporter for the Valley Stream Herald, and Richard Marino, former reporter for the Bellmore Herald, also wrote stories.
Brinton is also the senior editor of the Merrick and East Meadow Heralds.
The judges wrote of the Bellmore Herald's effort, "Aggressive reporting and follow-up. Commentary resulted in real positive change."
The Bellmore Herald was also the recipient of an honorable mention award for Coverage of Elections/Politics.
"The quality of writing stood out," the judges said.
In particular, the judges were impressed by Brinton's stories. He wrote several stories on the local, state and federal elections last year. "Brinton in particular is a talent whose ledes jump off the page."
Ads take awards
The Herald advertising department also won two awards. Nassau Herald advertising representative Joan Battino was awarded first place for the Best Small Space Ad created by the newspaper. Judges praised Battino for her work for Begonias in Woodmere.
The entire department received second place in Best Multi-Advertiser Pages for the advertiser-supported American flag pullout poster for the Fourth of July.
Judges said, "Great concept. Excellent way to organize advertisers in support of national holiday."
