- Parkersburg South swimmer Quade Harris, right, celebrates with assistant coach Don Bailey after breaking the school record while placing second in the 100 backstroke during the 2023 West Virginia State Swim Meet in Morgantown. This photo by sports reporter Kerry Patrick won first place in Sports Photography for Division I in the West Virginia Press Association’s 2024 Better Newspapers Contest. (File Photo)
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- Third place, Best Front Page, by Kristofer McKenna.
Parkersburg South swimmer Quade Harris, right, celebrates with assistant coach Don Bailey after breaking the school record while placing second in the 100 backstroke during the 2023 West Virginia State Swim Meet in Morgantown. This photo by sports reporter Kerry Patrick won first place in Sports Photography for Division I in the West Virginia Press Association’s 2024 Better Newspapers Contest. (File Photo)
CHARLESTON — The Parkersburg News and Sentinel received multiple awards for editorial and advertising in the West Virginia Press Association’s annual Better Newspapers Contest, including second place in General Excellence for its division.
The General Excellence awards are determined by points received for each winning entry. The News and Sentinel is part of Division I, which includes daily newspapers with circulation above 9,000.
“Our goal is always to deliver the best product we can for our readers,” Publisher Jim Spanner said. “To be recognized for that work by our peers is an honor.”
Editorial staff received a first-place award for Best Special Section for the Foundations pages in February and March that focuses on key entities in the community. Another first-place award came in Service to the Community for a follow-up story generated by a reader’s question about snakes that went missing following an accident in Washington County.
The staff was also recognized with second-place awards for Best Newspaper Design and Best Editorial Page, as well as a third place for Best Single Issue.
Third place, Best Front Page, by Kristofer McKenna.
The advertising staff received second- and third-place recognition for Best Promotion of Public Notice for entries related to a free tire and paint collection and the Mid-Ohio Valley Health Department, respectively. Advertising staff also earned a second-place award for Best Special Section – Sports for the annual Pigskin Preview.
Page designer Kristofer McKenna and News Editor Terry Estep took first- and second-place honors, respectively, in the Best Headline Writing category. McKenna also won third place in Best Front Page.
State government reporter Steven Allen Adams won first place in Best News Columnist for his weekly Reporter’s Notebook column while also claiming a third-place prize for Best Coverage of Breaking News for his story on U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin not seeking re-election.
Sports reporter Kerry Patrick won first place in Sports Photography for his photo of Parkersburg South swimmer Quade Harris with assistant coach Don Bailey at the West Virginia State Swim Meet, where South defended its state title. Patrick also earned third-place honors in the Best Sports Event Reporting category for his coverage of Tyler Consolidated’s regional baseball championship over Wheeling Central.
City Editor Evan Bevins received a first-place award in the Best Coverage of Breaking News category for a story about a woman who was arrested following an hours-long standoff after she brandished what turned out to be a pellet gun. He also won second place in Best Governmental Affairs Reporting for a story on the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources halting plans to establish a forensic group home in Parkersburg following public backlash.
Online Manager Art Smith won first place in the Best Illustration, Cartoon or Graphic category for his graphic mapping the new Parkersburg Ohio River Trail, which opened last year.
Copy Editor Candice Black received a second-place award in Best Lifestyle Columnist for her Black Ink columns.
“I appreciate the hard work and dedication of our team in keeping the residents of the Mid-Ohio Valley informed,” Executive Editor Christina Myer said. “It’s encouraging to see it honored in this way.”
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Parkersburg News and Sentinel awards in the 2024 West Virginia Press Association Better Newspapers Contest
Editorial Division
* Staff, first place, Best Special Section
* Steven Allen Adams, first place, Best News Columnist
* Evan Bevins, staff; first place; Service to the Community
* Evan Bevins, first place, Best Coverage of Breaking News
* Kristofer McKenna, first place, Best Headline Writing
* Kerry Patrick, first place, Sports Photography
* Art Smith, first place, Best Illustration, Cartoon or Graphic
* Staff, second place, Best Editorial Page
* Staff, second place, Best Newspaper Design
* Evan Bevins, second place, Best Governmental Affairs Reporting
* Candice Black, second place, Best Lifestyle Columnist
* Terry Estep, second place, Best Headline Writing
* Staff, third place, Best Single Issue
* Steven Allen Adams, third place, Best Coverage of Breaking News
* Kristofer McKenna, third place, Best Front Page
* Kerry Patrick, third place, Best Sports Event Reporting
Advertising Division
* Staff, second place, Best Promotion of Public Notice
* Staff, second place, Best Special Section – Sports
* Staff, third place, Best Promotion of Public Notice
