News & Observer, Herald-Sun win 65 NC Press Association awards

Jessica Banov
·5 min read

The News & Observer and The Herald-Sun took home 65 awards from the North Carolina Press Association Friday, including top awards for the overall paper and websites.

The awards were announced at the annual conference, held virtually this year, that honors the best work from news organizations across the state.

The News & Observer won 42 first-place awards as well as second place for General Excellence among the largest newspapers in the state. The News & Observer also won first place General Excellence for its website.

The Herald-Sun in Durham won 19 first-place awards as well as second place for General Excellence among the state’s mid-sized newspapers. The Herald-Sun also won first place in the General Excellence category for its website.

Two staff members also won awards for collaborations with staff from The Charlotte Observer, a sister publication.

The N&O staff also won the Henry Lee Weathers Freedom of Information Award for the story, “While you were sleeping: North Carolina legislators restrict access to public records.” The story revealed the General Assembly had passed Senate Bill 168, which would have shielded death-investigation records from the public, if Gov. Roy Cooper hadn’t vetoed it.

Staff writer Virginia Bridges won the Media and the Law Award of Excellence Best Series Award, given by the North Carolina Bar Association.

NC Insider won a first-place award.

Here is a look at the winners.

The News & Observer

First Place

▪ Staff, General Excellence for Websites

▪ Staff, Multimedia Project. “Journey Across the 100”

▪ Staff, Henry Lee Weathers Freedom of Information Award. “While you were sleeping: North Carolina legislators restrict access to public records.”

▪ Staff, Use of Photographs

▪ Staff, Photo Page or Essay. “Peaceful protests turn violent”

▪ Staff, Email newsletter

▪ Staff, Headline writing

▪ Staff, Magazine or Niche Publication. Walter magazine, November 2019

Kyler Spears, 5, and her father, Brandon, say hello to Superman, played by Miguel Aguilar, at WakeMed Children’s Hospital in Raleigh, N.C., Friday, October 4, 2019. The photo took first place for feature photography among the state’s largest newspapers in the North Carolina Press Association’s annual awards.
Kyler Spears, 5, and her father, Brandon, say hello to Superman, played by Miguel Aguilar, at WakeMed Children’s Hospital in Raleigh, N.C., Friday, October 4, 2019. The photo took first place for feature photography among the state’s largest newspapers in the North Carolina Press Association’s annual awards.

▪ Brooke Cain and David Raynor, Business Writing. “Which grocery stores have the Triangle’s best prices? We visited 16 chains to find out.”

▪ Dan Kane and Lucille Sherman, Election and Political Reporting. “He arrived in NC with big donations, but the money traces to a business with QAnon link.”

▪ Anna Johnson, City and County Government Reporting. “After the boot, what’s next for Raleigh’s longtime citizen advisers?”

▪ Kate Murphy and Martha Quillin, General News Reporting. UNC Silent Sam Confederate monument lawsuit.

▪ Dan Kane and David Raynor, Investigative Reporting. Mako Medical stories.

▪ Josh Shaffer and Ashad Hajela, News Enterprise Reporting. “High-crime motels are costing Raleigh taxpayers”

▪ Ethan Hyman, Feature Photography. “Superheroes drop in to raise spirits”

▪ Ned Barnett, Serious Columns

▪ Luke DeCock, Sports columns

Second Place

▪ Staff, General Excellence

▪ Staff, Public Service Award. “Fighting Misinformation in the 2020 Elections.”

▪ Ethan Hyman, Hugh Morton Photographer of the Year

▪ Ned Barnett and Peter St. Onge, Editorial Page

▪ Staff, Magazine or Niche Publication, Walter magazine, September 2020

▪ Martha Quillin, Beat News Reporting. “The demise of monuments honoring white supremacy and its champions”

▪ Virginia Bridges, City and County Government Reporting. “Defund the police: What it means and what some North Carolina cities are doing”

Raleigh Police Detective B.H. Winston, a veteran of 16 years, fist bumps Albert Fervily after having a conversation with Keesh Ormond, left and Dante Robinson following a rally at the Raleigh Municipal Building on Tuesday, June 2, 2020 in Raleigh, N.C. The photo took second place for general news photography among the state’s largest newspapers in the North Carolina Press Association’s annual awards.

▪ Andrew Carter, Feature Writing. “Riley Howell died trying to stop a mass shooting. These are the people he left behind.”

▪ Andrew Carter, News Enterprise Reporting. “They dressed presidents. Now Brooks Brothers shirt makers in NC await their fate.”

▪ Andrew Carter, News Feature Writing. “Three nights of Raleigh protests, and a movement for change.”

▪ Juli Leonard, Multimedia Project. “Video diaries from the COVID pandemic.”

▪ Robert Willett, General News Photography. “Friendly dialogue”

▪ Robert Willett, Spot Photography. “Surveying the damage.”

▪ Josh Shaffer, Ledes

A series of photos from the protests in downtown Raleigh Saturday, May 30, 2020, took first place in photo page category among the state’s largest newspapers in the North Carolina Press Association’s annual awards.
A series of photos from the protests in downtown Raleigh Saturday, May 30, 2020, took first place in photo page category among the state’s largest newspapers in the North Carolina Press Association’s annual awards.

Third Place

▪ Staff, Community Coverage. Nov. 3-4, 2019

▪ Robert Willett, Hugh Morton Photographer of the Year

▪ Staff, Magazine or Niche Publication. Walter magazine, July 2020

▪ Zachery Eanes, City and County Government Reporting. “AI is determining your property value. But it still needs human eyes in some places.”

▪ Anna Johnson, Investigative Reporting. “Raleigh City Council member resigns after accusations of ‘predatory’ encounters.”

Cynthia Cooper looks for personal items for a family member who had their home destroyed after a tornado spawned by Hurricane Isaias destroyed a rural mobile home neighborhood killing two residents on Morning Road near Windsor N.C. on Wednesday, August 5, 2020. The photo took second place for spot photography among the state’s largest newspapers in the North Carolina Press Association’s annual awards.

▪ Luke DeCock, Lighter Columns

▪ Martha Quillin, Ledes

▪ Juli Leonard, Feature Photography. “School and early voting, while protecting from COVID, all at once.”

▪ Ethan Hyman, Sports Photography. “Eye for the rebound”

▪ Ethan Hyman, Sports Feature Photography. “Champs! First title in 29 years.”

▪ Julia Wall, Video. “Despite ALS diagnosis, Andrea Peet is using her strength for good.”

The Herald-Sun

First Place

▪ Staff, General Excellence for Websites

▪ Staff, Community Coverage. May 30-31, 2020

▪ Staff, General News Reporting. “Public housing residents evacuated amid carbon monoxide crisis”

▪ Casey Toth, Spot Photography. “Protester arrested”

▪ Dawn Baumgartner Vaughan, Religion & Faith Reporting. “Pete Buttigieg coming to Rev. Barber’s church as Democrats compete for black voters.”

Skip Gibbs, organizer with the Other America Movement, protects the wooden pallets used to block the road in front of the Durham Police Department headquarters before officers arrested him and three others, on Thursday, Jun. 25, 2020, in Durham, N.C. The photo took first place for spot photography among the state’s mid-sized newspapers in the North Carolina Press Association’s annual awards.

Second Place

▪ Staff, Email newsletter

▪ Staff, Use of Social Media

▪ Brian Murphy, General News Reporting. “How Blackbeard’s ship and a diver with an ‘iron hand’ ended up at the Supreme Court.”

▪ Tammy Grubb, News Enterprise Reporting. Domestic violence protective orders

▪ Kate Murphy, News Feature Writing. “Her father, a Duke doctor, died as she dealt with pandemic. Now, she must grieve alone.”

▪ Casey Toth, Feature Photography. “Even the bull wears a mask.”

▪ Robert Willett, Video. “Celebrating a life well lived, a life taken by COVID-19”

▪ Dawn Baumgartner Vaughan, Election and Political Reporting. “Why deep-blue Durham is choosing a state lawmaker early”

Third Place

▪ Staff, Headline writing.

▪ Charlie Innis, City and County Government Reporting. “There have been 400 shooting incidents in Durham this year. Could this free offer help?”

▪ Virginia Bridges, Investigative Reporting. “Did an NC rapper slip through judicial system cracks?”

▪ Julia Wall, Feature Photography. “First day of virtual school.”

▪ Julia Wall, Spot Photography. “Sorting through the rubble.”

▪ Chapel Fowler, Sports Feature Writing. “ACC football record book: Wake Forest’s Rusty LaRue used cold streak to get very hot.”

NC Insider

First Place

▪ Colin Campbell, Election and Political Reporting. “‘A hell of a drug’: How partisanship is infecting the debate over coronavirus response.”

The Charlotte Observer

First Place

▪ Casey Toth and Jessica Koscielniak, Video. “After 44 years in prison, Ronnie Long adjusts to freedom”

Third Place

▪ Sophie Kasakove and Devna Bose, Beat News Reporting. “The pandemic has sounded an alarm bell on North Carolina’s digital divide.”