ALBANY — The Daily Gazette claimed a host of awards in the New York Press Association (NYPA) 2022 Better Newspaper Contest this past week, including 2022 Sports Writer of the Year, won for the fourth time by Mike MacAdam.
During an awards luncheon in Albany on Friday, the Gazette secured the top two spots in the Best Audience Development Promotion, with the organization honoring Gazette Vice President of Consumer Revenue Michelle Wright for a pair of advertisements featuring the paper’s coverage of the summer season at Saratoga Race Course and the Gazette’s subscription specials.
Wright said that the key to audience development is reaching new audiences while deepening the connection with the paper’s existing readership.
“The Daily Gazette produces quality content every single day,” she said. “It’s my job to make sure people know that. When you are proud of the company you work for, it makes it that much easier to succeed. ”
The Gazette sports section won the top prize for Sports Coverage, with the judges noting that no other paper in the competition could match the section’s “breadth and depth of coverage, nor the design and photography.”
MacAdam, who began his tenure with the Gazette in 1987 and has served as a columnist, copy editor and beat writer for Siena basketball, Union College hockey and Thoroughbred horse racing, was praised by the judges for columns on former New York Giants coach turned racehorse owner Bill Parcells and former Buffalo Bills player Butch Byrd.
“Great writing,” the judges noted of MacAdam’s submissions. “Loved the feature on Parcells. That fire to win never wanes. ‘Byrd deserves better from the Bills’ also contains some great storytelling.”
Gazette Editor Miles Reed praised the paper’s staff for their accomplishments in 2022.
“It’s a real honor for the Gazette to be recognized among all of the outstanding news organizations in New York state,” he said. “Names like Mike MacAdam, Erica Miller, Andrew Waite and Adam Shinder represent the best of what we do. These awards represent some of our best work from some of our best journalists, and it’s more than just the individuals named. Every good piece of work involves a level of teamwork within the newsroom. We’re fortunate to have a cohesive team that knows how to pull in the same direction with the same goal in mind – great local journalism.”
The Gazette’s special Dig In! dining section from October 2022 won the contest’s top prize for Special Sections/Niche Publications-Newsprint Division 2.
“Our first-place award for the Comfort Food special section is the perfect example of our excellent teamwork,” Reed said. “It involved a lot of good work by a dedicated bunch of writers, photographers and editors and then the whole thing was tied together by the outstanding design work of our designer/editor John Thorpe.”
Waite took home second prize for Best Column in Division 3 for three submissions.
“Nice touches throughout,” the judges noted. “Good balance in bringing the reader along in your life and having them look beyond it.”
Miller finished third in the Photographer of the Year race.
“Very clean series of images that also tell the story of a vibrant and diverse community,” the judges wrote of her work.
Gazette Deputy Director of Content Shinder claimed third prize in a pair of competitions – Sports Feature writing and the Feature Story category.
“These sorts of stories remind your readers why newspapers continue to play an important role in their daily lives,” the judges declared.
Contact Ted Remsnyder at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at @TedRemsnyder.
Categories: -News-, News, Schenectady, Schenectady County
