Times wins journalism honors

The Sundance Times’s Sarah Pridgeon was honored at the Wyoming Press Association (WPA) annual convention this weekend as the first journalist from a small weekly newspaper to win the Jim Tiemann Memorial Legal Reporting Award.

This major award is presented jointly by the Wyoming Press Association and Wyoming State Bar Foundation and honors a writer for, “consistent excellence in a body of work on legal issues”, judged on clarity, quality, accuracy and knowledge of subject matter in stories dealing with legal issues.

The award was created in memory of Jim Tiemann, longtime reporter for the Rawlins Daily Times who went on to head the Wyoming State Bar Foundation.

WPA President

Also at the convention, Sundance Times Publisher Jeff Moberg was elected to serve as the president of the Wyoming Press Association’s Board of Directors.

The WPA is a full-service trade association representing all 41 legal newspapers in the State of Wyoming, governed by a board of directors elected by its members.

Public Service

The Sundance Times was also the recipient of a number of Pacemaker awards during the convention. These awards represent the individual achievement element of the WPA’s annual contest and are open to newspapers across the state.

Foremost among these was the Public Service Award, which seeks to honor efforts by Wyoming newspapers to serve the public good and looks for examples of positive change that has benefited the public or its institutions.

The Times was picked for this award on the basis of its work to address a complaint that the board of trustees for Crook County Medical Services District (CCMSD) had held “illegal” meetings by failing to consistently advertise the time and date ahead of time.

The team responded to this allegation with extensive research into the background of the complaint on both sides, including conversations with the member of the public who raised the issue, members of the board of trustees, CCMSD staff and both the board’s legal representation and an independent legal expert.

The Times published an article highlighting the complaint, the issues that had led to it and the board’s planned response. Newspaper staff also worked with CCMSD to remedy the issue; meeting announcements are now published each month as legal notices to ensure that not only is the public made aware of meeting times and places, but CCMSD has a record of doing so.

Pacemakers

The Times also placed first for headline writing, with judges commenting that headlines from the newspaper are “short and interesting”.

The Times placed second for Front Page Design, with judges noting that, “the layout is nice, and the use of color is balanced and well planned”.

Moberg took first place in the Wildlife Photography category with an image of two elk on a snowy hillside. “Good job on the composition and thank you for showing us these majestic animals,” commented the judges.

Pridgeon took first place in the Business and Energy reporting category for a selection of stories about progress with the Rare Element Resources demo plant; shift cuts at Neiman Sawmill; and the arrival of Rehab Solutions to Main Street.

“Strong coverage of key employers and potential employers in the community,” commented judges.

Pridgeon also took second place in the Spot News category, which judges stories for which no advance preparation is possible, such as natural disasters. Her winning article was about the Fish Fire.

“So many fire stories – this one contained vivid writing and description,” commented the judges. “You could feel the flames and the urgency of trying to get it contained.”

Pridgeon also took second place in the Outdoors and Environmental Reporting category for a selection of stories about the Black Hills National Forest management plan update and Crook County’s new game wardens.

“Outstanding local coverage and interviews with key figures,” commented the judges.

Pridgeon took second place in Education Reporting for a selection of stories about local graduation rates, American Relief Plan rescue funding for schools and Superintendent of Public Instruction Brian Schroeder’s support for a childhood literacy bill.

“Stories offered relevant news that showed the readers how the issues at local schools affect their lives,” commented judges.