2012 winners

The Tulsa Press Club announced the winners of the 2012 Great Plains Journalism Awards during a conference Friday at the historic Mayo Hotel in downtown Tulsa, Okla.

One of the most prestigious journalism awards in mid-America, the Great Plains drew hundreds of entries from an eight-state region.

A blue-ribbon panel of esteemed journalists, including three Pulitzer Prize winners, judged all of the entries.

The Great Plains Newspaper of the Year is the Tulsa World, Tulsa, Okla.

The Great Plains Writer of the Year is Michael Overall of the Tulsa World.

The Great Plains Photographer of the Year is Mike Simons of the Tulsa World.

The Newspaper of the Year, with a circulation under 75,000, is the The Argus Leader, Sioux Falls, S.D.

The Great Plains Magazine Writer of the Year is Jeannette Cooperman of St. Louis Magazine.

The Great Plains Magazine of the Year is Oklahoma Today.

The Great Plains PR Magazine of the Year is Intermission Magazine.

The Great Plains Website of the Year is The Oklahoman’s NewsOK.com.

Here is the complete list of winners and finalists:

Best Website Design
Finalists: Michael Mason, Ron Zvagelsky, Carlos Knight, This Land Press
Jason Collington, Tulsa World Staff

Winner: The Oklahoman Staff, NewsOK.com
Judges’ comments: NewsOK is a good looking web site — nice use of a grid, nice use of white space, nice navigation. What raised it up further was the design work on internal pages that made them stand out.

Blog Writing
Finalist: Darnell Mayberry, The Oklahoman

Winner: Steve Lackmeyer, The Oklahoman
Judge’s comments: Great job covering city development, codes and a lot of things that can seem dense and difficult, and getting the community to join the discussion in a thoughtful way.

Best Podcast
Winner: Amy Wendle, This Land Press
Judge’s comments: The attention to production value in this series of four podcasts contributed to compelling storytelling. The editing approach to the Joe Brainard segment stood out as unique from the others which each had strong characters. The Stringtown poetry podcast stands out in its profile of Mary McAnally who in the 1970’s led a poetry workshop for inmates at Stringtown Prison in Stringtown, Okla. to help rehabilitate prisoners.

Magazine News Writing
Finalist: Scott Wigton, TulsaPeople Magazine

Winner: Joy Jenkins, TulsaPeople

Magazine Feature Writing
Finalists: Thomas Fox Averill, Oklahoma Humanities Magazine
Jeannette Cooperman, St. Louis Magazine
Steffie Corcoran and Holley Bailey, Oklahoma Today

Winner: Jeannette Cooperman, St. Louis Magazine

Magazine Profile Writing
Finalists: Jeannette Cooperman, St. Louis Magazine
Steffie Corcoran, John Jernigan, Oklahoma Today

Winner: Mark Brown, This Land Press
Judge’s comment: “I liked everything about this! A free-form, on-the-spot trip to Walla Walla and a primer on cheap (but good) wine! What a hoot. (great art work).”

Magazine Column Writing
Winner: Ray Hartmann, St. Louis Magazine

Magazine Page Design
Finalists: Dennis Leach, Denver Nicks, This Land Press
Shelly Bryant, Jason Daily, Bill Stephens, Jennifer Meeke, Nathan Pettengil, Bert Hull, Jason Barr, Lawrence Magazine — Sunflower Publishing, Carolyn Preul, Inside Columbia

Winner: Daniel Elchert and Sharah Norwood, St. Louis Magazine
Judge’s comment: Who doesn’t like ice cream? This wonderfully snappy 15-page story on the ins and outs of frozen dessert in the St. Louis area was something I could most definitely scream for. It was a quirky, smile-inducing read. And despite its brilliance, it wouldn’t have worked without this layout. Brilliant.

Magazine Cover
Finalists: Jeremy Luther, Carlos Knight, Michael Mason, This Land Press
Dan Brenner, Carolyn Preul, Inside Columbia

Winner: Jeremy Luther, Carlos Knight, Michael Mason, This Land Press
Judge’s comment: What a wonderful illustration. I love the way the designer worked the magazine’s logo into it.

Photo Illustration
Winner: Chris Landsberger, The Oklahoman

General News Photography
Finalists: Corey Perrine, Omaha World-Herald
Nate Billings, The Oklahoman

Winner: Michael Wyke, Tulsa World

Spot News Photography
Finalists: James Gibbard, Tulsa World
Rick McFarland, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Winner: Mike Simons, Tulsa World

Multiple News Photographs
Finalists: Mike Simons, Tulsa World
Mike Simons, Tulsa World

Winner: Christopher Smith, Tom Gilbert, James Gibbard, Cory Young, Michael Wyke, Mike Simons, Matt Barnard, Tulsa World

Feature Photography, Single
Finalists: Sarah Phipps, The Oklahoman
Chris Landsberger, The Oklahoman

Winner: Michael Wyke, Tulsa World Publishing Company

Mutliple Feature Photographs
Finalists: Alyssa Schukar, Omaha World Herald
Matt Miller Omaha World-Herald

Winner: Matt Miller, Alyssa Schukar, Rebecca S. Gratz, Omaha World Herald

Sports Action Photography
Finalists: Sarah Phipps, The Oklahoman
Corey Perrine, Omaha World-Herald

Winner: Bryan Terry, The Oklahoman

Sports Feature Photography
Finalists: Bryan Terry The Oklahoman
Nick Oxford The Bison – OBU
Sarah Phipps The Oklahoman

Winner: Matt Miller, Omaha World-Herald

Portrait Photography
Finalist: Nick Oxford, The Bison — Oklahoma Baptist University

Winner: Alyssa Schukar Omaha World-Herald

Non-Deadline Video
Finalists: Matt Leach, Sterlin Harjo, This Land Press
Adam Wisneski Tulsa World

Winner: Adam Wisneski, Tulsa World for Becoming Katie
Judge’s comments: Judge’s comment: The best story in the category. Beautifully light interview, some good natural moments and great photographs, along with a good story line made this the first place winner.

Audio Slideshow
Finalists: Mike Simons, Adam Wisneski, Jeff Lautenberger, Tulsa World
Garett Fisbeck, The Vista– University of Central Oklahoma
Derrick Ho, Hannah Rieger, The Oklahoman

Winner: Bryan Terry, The Oklahoman for Endeavor Games

Multimedia Project or Series
Finalists: Ron J. Jackson, Jr., The Oklahoman
Robert Medley, Paige Dillard, Steve Boaldin, Nick Tankersley, Kyle Roberts, Grayson Cook, Angi Bruss, Paul Hellstern, The Oklahoman

Winner: Adam Wisneski Tulsa World for Women in Prison
Judge’s Comments: Tulsa World’s Women in Prison project is a great example of how powerful multimedia can create an impact that extends far beyond the print product. The four parts were well organized with video leading each section — Introduction, Courts, Prison and Getting Out. Access to the prison, prisoners and a judge was key to the success of this project. The use of graphics within the videos to boil down statistics helped clarify the complexity of the issue. The photography was thoughtful and well-composed for the subject matter all the way down to the b-roll. The length of the videos, which ranged from 4-8 minutes in length, held up because of the well-paced edit and strong storytelling through choice of characters. The entire project goes deep with photo galleries, additional graphics and resources.

Magazine Portrait Photography
Winner: Jason Daily Topeka Magazine- Sunflower Publishing

Magazine Illustration Winner
Winner: Michelle Pollard, TulsaPeople Magazine

Multiple Magazine Photograhs
Winner: Michelle Pollard TulsaPeople Magazine

Magazine Feature Photography
Winner: L.G. Patterson, Carolyn Preul, Haley Adams, Amy Susan, Inside Columbia

News Package
Finalists: Bryan Painter, The Oklahoman
Terry Vandrovec, The Argus Leader

Winner: Carol Hunger, Jeffrey Kummer, Jennifer Jacobs, Jason Noble, Jason Clayworth, Josh Hafner, The Des Moines Register for 2012 Iowa Caucuses
Judge’s comments: With its Iowa caucus coverage, the Des Moines Register exemplifies how to succeed as a multi-platform news organization.

Project/Investigative Reporting
Finalists: Ginnie Graham, Curtis Killman, Cary Aspinwall, Tulsa World
Nolan Clay, Robby Trammell, Randy Ellis, Ann Kelley, The Oklahoman

Winner: John Hult The Argus Leader for Fighting DUI: One Sobering Week
Judge’s comments: Judge’s comment: The Argus Leader’s examination of a week’s worth of DUI cases produces exactly what an endeavor of this sort should (and rarely does): an engaging series that intertwines compelling personal stories with clear-eyed, substantive reporting and analysis

General News Reporting, more than 75,000 circulation
Finalists: Joseph Morton, Paul Hammel, Omaha World-Herald

Winner: Bryan Painter, The Oklahoman, for Drought Wheat Crop Package
Judge’s comment: Bryan Painter writes a series of stories about the Oklahoma drought that explores the human toll behind this natural disaster with the same strength and restraint shown by many of his subjects.

General News, fewer than 75,000 circulation
Finalists: Jennie Lloyd, Urban Tulsa Weekly
Debra DeCoster, KC Hispanic News
Jennifer Carrico, High Plains Journal

Winner: Cody Winchester, The Argus Leader for Corps alerted to coming flood
Judge’s comment: Impressive use of FOIA and emails to trace the pending flooding disaster, and officials’ attempts to manipulate the public’s knowledge. Linking to original documents and soliciting readers’ analysis was a great way to include the public in this catastrophe that affected so many thousands of residents

Narrative Story/Series
Finalists: Kelly Dyer Fry, The Oklahoman
Michael O’Connor, Omaha World-Herald
Michael Overall, Tulsa World

Winner: Cathy Frye, Rick McFarland, Kirk Montgomery, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for Boys of Fall
Judge’s comment: My eyes are wet. I’m going to hug my two teenage sons. Okay, I’m back. Wow. This is not only engaging, well reported and extremely well-written. It’s important. A must-read for every high school coach.

Beat Reporting
Finalists: Debra Hale-Shelton, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Tim Potter, Wichita Eagle
Sonya Colberg, The Oklahoman

Winner: Bryan Painter, The Oklahoman for the Drought Series
Judge’s comment: Very impressive work. Bryan took a deep and comprehensive look at the way droughts in Oklahoma have affected residents there. He added context and history that was also helpful. His work gives a well-rounded picture of the drought’s devastation.

Feature Writing
Finalists: Dirk Chatelain, Omaha World-Herald
Ken Raymond, Linda Lynna, The Oklahoman
Rick Plumlee, Wichita Eagle

Winner: Dugan Arnett, Ink/Kansas City Star for An Heir to Hate
Judge’s comment: I have never read a story like this, inside the hater’s head. I very much enjoyed seeing the world through her eyes and trying to understand her motivation and the price she is willing to pay — while juxtaposing that with her cousin who escaped.

Business Reporting
Finalists: Bryan Painter, The Oklahoman
Molly McMillin, Wichita Eagle
D.R. Stewart, John Stancavage, Tulsa World

Winner: Erin Golden, Steve Jordon, Henry J. Cordes, Ross Boettcher, Omaha World-Herald for Berkshire Shareholders Meeting.
Judge’s comment: Exhaustive coverage of a fascinating topic. Equal attention paid to color and essential backgrounding.

Business Feature
Finalists: Rod Walton, Tulsa World
Paula Burkes, The Oklahoman

Winner: Erin Golden, Omaha World-Herald, Town reaps windfall from bumper crop of turbines
Judge’s comment: Erin’s writing is especially strong. Her led drew me in, and the entire story held my interest as a reader. Erin really succeeded at how energy issues are impacting the local community.

Sports Reporting
Finalists: Mike Kimball, John Helsley, Diana Baldwin, John Rohde, Carla Hinton, The Oklahoman
Henry J. Cordes, Omaha World-Herald

Winner: Tulsa World Staff, Tulsa World for Our worst nightmare, OSU Plane Crash
Judges’ comments: Excellent writing and visual presentation. Impressive reporting that reflects a diversity of voices and emotions

Sports Feature
Finalists: Jenni Carlson, The Oklahoman
Dugan Arnett, Ink/Kansas City Star
Tariq Lee, Garett Fisbeck, The Oklahoman

Winner: Dugan Arnett, Ink/Kansas City Star for Irony of Errors
Judge’s comment: Nicely crafted feature that explores the conflict between arbitrary (and, in this case, ironic) rigidity of coaches and the inevitable irresponsibility of their charges. Textured and satisfying.

Sports Column
Finalists: John Klein, Tulsa World
Tom Shatel, Omaha World-Herald
Kelly Bostian, Tulsa World

Winner: Jenni Carlson, The Oklahoman
Judge’s comment: Strong viewpoints, engaging writing style. Polished and provocative.

Reviews
Finalists: Alicia Chesser, Urban Tulsa Weekly
Michael Smith, Tulsa World
George Lang, The Oklahoman

Winner: Philip Martin, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Judge’s comment: Sharp observations, expressed with grace and precision. Best of all, the reviewer doesn’t lose sight of his audience and its (local) sensibilities, while maintaining transparency about his own biases. A pleasure to read.

Entertainment Feature
Finalists: George Lang, The Oklahoman
Jennifer Chancellor, Tulsa World
Rita Sherrow, Tulsa World

Winner: Whitney Ortega, The Oklahoman, for OKC Parks Package
Judge’s comment: Charming historical story with ample quotes and compelling visuals (archive photos and timeline). Good local flavor.

Specialty Feature
Finalists: Paula Burkes, The Oklahoman
Kim Brown, Tulsa World

Winner: Sarah Gish, Ink/Kansas City Star, Progressive Pork
Judge’s comment: Sarah did an excellent job on her feature, “Progressive Pork.” She did extensive interviews, offered helpful context, and presented the information in a way that’s clear, concise and fun. You can really hear her voice shine through in her writing.

Special Section
Finalists: Steve Paul, Joe Ledford, Jim Barcus, Todd Feedback,
Neil Nakahodo, Barbara Hill-Meyer, Paula Southerland,
Robert Trussell, Mary Lou Nolan, Kansas City Star
Tony Leys, Rodney White, Kelli Brown, The Des Moines Register
George Lang, Matt Clayton, Look At OKC / The Oklahoman

Winner: World-Herald Staff, Omaha World Herald for College Football Preview
Judge’s comment: A complete tour de force of stories, photos, illustrations and graphics, all rolled up with a theme that carries throughout the section.

News Page Design
Finalists: Felicia Murray, The Oklahoman
Jay St. Pierre, Omaha World-Herald
Tammy Yttri, Omaha World Herald

Winner: Katie Larson, Omaha World-Herald
Judge’s comment: When news breaks and the photographers bring back great work, it’s often the job of the designer to simply play the picture big and get the hell out of its way. That’s what’s happening here.

Feature Page Design
Finalists: Ananda Spadt, Omaha World-Herald
Moran Elwell, The Oklahoman
James Royal, Tulsa World

Winner: Tammy Yttri, Omaha World-Herald
Judge’s comment: In a very, very strong category, this entry stood out with its class, its refined sense of typography and its immaculate placement of that type.

Editorial Cartoon
Finalists: Jeff Koterba, Omaha World-Herald
John Deering, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Winner: Bruce Plante Tulsa World
Judges comments: All three samples were huge winners. The Steve Jobs was one of the better I’ve seen on this topic. The Arizona shooter was chilling and subtle. The Arab spring cartoon absolutely nailed that topic. Wonderful stuff.

Editorial Portfolio
Finalists: Bob Satnan, The Sedalia Democrat
Holly Martin, High Plains Journal
John Strand, High Plains Reader

Winner: J.E. McReynolds, The Oklahoman
Judge’s comment: Well crafted editorials and pithy writing help support the bold conclusion that the popular viewpoint is not always correct. Bravo to the newspaper for maintaining a consistent voice of reason

Personal Column Portfolio
Finalists: Paul Greenberg, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Jennifer Palmer, The Oklahoman
Patrick Lalley, the Argus Leader

Winner: Michael Kelly, Omaha World-Herald
Judge’s comment: Michael’s voice really shines through in his writing. He does more than just spout off his opinion; he does reporting that makes his columns richer and deeper. I love the diversity of topics he writes about, too.

Feature Headline Portfolio
Finalists: J.E. McReynolds, The Oklahoman
Patricia Gilliland, The Oklahoman

Winner: Rich Mills, Omaha World-Herald
Judge’s comment: “Maybe he should have gone with a driver” seems like one of those once-in-a-lifetime inspirations. But I see from this collection this particular editor thinks that way often. Brilliant work.

News Headline Portfolio
Finalists: Karen Welch, Tulsa World
Michael Roehrman, Wichita Eagle
Lisa McLendon, Wichita Eagle

Winner: Tim Sacco, Omaha World-Herald
Judge’s comment: “Larger measure of a man” showed great wit and subtlety. “Thisclose” was a great way to play with letter spacing — and get away with it. But the presidential “tee party.” I take my hat off to you. Just amazing.

Great Plains Student Website of the Year
Finalists: The Journal Staff, The Journal, Webster University

Winner: The Baker Orange Staff, The Baker Orange
Judge’s comment: The Baker Orange is a good student web site. With solid site design and special project presentation, they did a nice job covering elementary school closings in the area, and a nice job with multimedia.

Great Plains Student Newspaper of the Year
Finalists: The Collegian Staff, The Collegian, University of Tulsa

Winner: The Daily O’Collegian Staff, The Daily O’Collegian
Judge’s comment: Nice work, especially on the coaches’ fatalities edition and the football weekend edition. The top of page one treatment on Oct. 28 was brilliant.

Great Plains Student Photographer of the Year
Finalists: Brittany Ruess, The Journal, Webster University
Kylie McMains, The Daily O’Collegian

Winner: Nick Oxford The Bison, Oklahoma Baptist University

Great Plains Student Writer of the Year
Finalists: Brittany Ruess, The Journal, Webster University
Josh Sellmeyer, The Journal, Webster University
Jonathan Sutton, The Daily O’Collegian, Oklahoma State University

Winner: Hannah Covington, The Oracle – Oral Roberts University
Judge’s comment: The writer shows talent for illuminating subjects that can be uncomfortable or controversial, including the Holocaust, Christians’ supposed cheapness and the college’s attempt to offer “amnesty” to students. All are logical and well written, with capable reporting behind the words. Extra credit for documenting the Kony meme weeks before it went viral.

Great Plains Student Editor-in-Chief of the Year
Winner: Kyle Fredrickson, The Daily O’Collegian
Judge’s comment: Good use of art. Nice mix of front page stories, outside of homecoming week

Great Plains Website of the Year
Matt Cauthron, TulsaPeople Staff, TulsaPeople Magazine
Wichita Eagle staff, Wichita Eagle

Winner: The Oklahoman Staff, NewsOK
Judge’s comment: NewsOK has great depth, and a lot of meticulous work in heads and decks, lacking in many sites. Very nice entertainment section. Good design, navigation, and multimedia all make it a stand-out site.

Great Plains Magazine Writer of the Year
Finalists: Joshua Kline, This Land Press
Lee Roy Chapman, This Land Press

Winner: Jeannette Cooperman, St. Louis Magazine
Judge’s comment: I felt her work was both broad and comprehensive and she seemed to dominate the category.

Great Plains Magazine Photographer of the Year
Winner: Michelle Pollard, TulsaPeople Magazine

Great Plains Magazine of the Year
Finalists: This Land Press, Michael Mason, Vincent LoVoi, Mark Brown
Manhattan Magazine – Sunflower Publishing, Shelly Bryant, Katy Ibsen, Jason Dailey, Bert Hull

Winner: Oklahoma Today, Joan Henderson, Steffie Corcoran, Steven Walker, Colleen McIntyre
Judge’s comment: This magazine is consistently good year after year. And this year is no exception!

Great Plains Company or PR Magazine of the Year
Winner: Intermission Magazine, Nancy Hermann, Nancy Bizjack, Amanda Watkins, Katy Livingston

Great Plains Photographer of the Year
Finalists: Bryan Terry, The Oklahoman
Sarah Phipps, The Oklahoman

Winner: Mike Simons, Tulsa World

Great Plains Writer of the Year
Finalists: Matthew Hansen, Omaha World-Herald
Cary Aspinwall, Tulsa World
Ginnie Graham, Tulsa World

Winner: Michael Overall, Tulsa World
Judge’s comment: Nice, easy voice throughout, with leads that really draw in readers. Good storytelling and pace. More than anyone else, this writer put me in the scene of a rowdy party bus, the mind of a new priest, and the aftermath of an awful tornado.

Great Plains Newspaper of the Year, fewer than 75,000 circulation
Winner: Argus Leader
Judge’s comment: The Argus Leader has published important stories throughout the past year, including a lengthy series on drunk driving.

Great Plains Newspaper of the Year
Finalist: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Winner: Tulsa World
Judges comments: Judge’s comment: The Tulsa World sets a high standard here as an innovative, ambitious local newspaper. Original stories range from an affecting multi-part profile of a transgender teenager to dogged reporting on a police corruption case. Striking photography and clean, contemporary design highlight the content. And the newspaper isn’t afraid to make unconventional decisions: when a historic blizzard struck the area, the World published an electronic-only edition that featured remarkably comprehensive coverage of the storm’s impact.

Links to the award-winning work
News Package
Winner
The Des Moines Register
2012 Iowa Caucuses

Finalist
The Oklahoman
Drought

Finalist
The Argus Leader
Mind Games

Business Feature
Winner
Omaha World Herald
Town reaps windfall from bumper crop of turbines

Finalist
Tulsa World
Keeping an eye on pipelines

Finalist
The Oklahoman
OK Here They Come

Sports Reporting
Winner
Tulsa World
Our worst nightmare

Finalist
The Oklahoman
OSU plane crash coverage

Finalist
Omaha World Herald
UNO plan: Division I, no football or wrestling

Sports Feature
Winner
Ink
Irony of Errors

Finalist
The Oklahoman
Friday Night Lights

Finalist
Ink
What’s wrong with Nick Wright?