ST. PETERSBURG, Fla.—The Georgia Bulletin and the Office of Communications for the Archdiocese of Atlanta received a total of 26 Catholic Press awards for work done in 2018 at this year’s Catholic Media Conference. The awards, some for collaborative projects, were announced at the June 21 banquet that closed the conference.

The conference, held June 18-21 in St. Petersburg, Fla., drew hundreds of attendees, including members of the Catholic Press Association of the United States and Canada, as well as others who work in print and online media for the church. 

Newspaper earns writing, photography awards

The Georgia Bulletin won first place in the Best Seasonal Issue category for the 2018 Eucharistic Congress issue. The newspaper staff also earned first place for Best Special Supplement on a Bishop’s Transition for the April 2018 issue covering the ordination of Bishop Joel M. Konzen, SM, as an auxiliary bishop.

The April 19, 2018 issue of The Georgia Bulletin won first place at the annual Catholic press awards for Best Special Supplement on a Bishop’s Transition. The issue covered the ordination of Bishop Joel M. Konzen, SM, as an auxiliary bishop. The newspaper and communications staff won a combined total of 26 awards at the Catholic Media Conference in Florida.

“Celebrating Deacons: Servants drawn to the ministry of Charity and Word,” netted a second-place award for Best In-Depth News/Special Reporting for The Georgia Bulletin. The archdiocesan annual report earned third place in the category of Best Annual Report. The report is published in the paper annually. It is produced and created by the finance department of the archdiocese and the communications department.

Photographer Michael Alexander earned a first-place award for Best Photo Story (feature) for “Battle of the Books.” Alexander received second place in the Best Multiple Picture Package (news) category for his photographs accompanying, “First graduation: Cristo Rey Atlanta.” He earned third place for Best Photograph (portrait) for “The student becomes the teacher,” a Then & NOW feature on Coach Aaron Parr of St. Pius X High School. He received an honorable mention for Best Photograph (sports) for “Titans’ touchdown celebration.”

Staff Writer Andrew Nelson earned third place for Best News Writing on a National or International Event with “Catholic students mark Parkland tragedy with prayers, activism.” Nelson’s story, “Father James Martin shares bridge-building message at Atlanta parishes,” received a third-place award for Best News Writing on a Local or Regional Event. For this category, judges considered submissions from non-weekly diocesan newspapers with a circulation of 25,001 or more.

Editor Nichole Golden earned third place in the category of Best Reporting on a Special Age Group (senior citizens) for a story on centenarian Emily Milner, a parishioner of the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.

The Georgia Bulletin also won numerous honorable mention awards. Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory, now archbishop of Washington, earned honorable mention for Best Regular Column by a Bishop or Archbishop for, “What I Have Seen and Heard.”

Also receiving honorable mentions were Andrew Nelson for Best Reporting on a Special Age Group (young adults) for his story on muralists sharing their faith with vivid street art, and Nichole Golden in the same category for a story on a UGA graduate serving others in Tanzania.

David King, Ph.D., won an honorable mention for Best Regular Column (culture, the arts and leisure). King’s columns focus on culture and the church.

In the category of Best Sports Journalism (sports news), Michael Alexander’s piece, “Blessed Trinity Titans retain state football championship title,” garnered an honorable mention. Nichole Golden also received an honorable mention for a sports feature on the retirement of longtime St. Pius X Athletic Director Mark Kelly.

Communications staff recognized

Archbishop Wilton Gregory and the archdiocesan communications staff received first place for Best Twitter Account (diocesan bishop). The award was made possible with the collaborative work of Samantha Smith, Tatiana Villa and Joanie Santander in support of the archbishop.

In the category of Best Use of Social Media for Breaking News, the archdiocesan communications staff earned second place for the response to the Tree of Life Synagogue Shooting.

Staff members, led by Director of Communications Paula Gwynn Grant, won third place for best press release for the welcome of a new auxiliary, Bishop Joel M. Konzen, SM. Staff member Samantha Smith earned a third-place honor for Best E-Newsletter for welcoming Bishop Konzen.

Videographer Allen Kinzly won third place for Best Freestanding Presentation of Online Video for “Warriors to Lourdes” and another third place for a video promoting pro-life activities, “Unmasking Mental Health.”

The newspaper/communications team of Nelson, Alexander and Kinzly earned an honorable mention for Best Multimedia Package (feature) for a piece on Catholic comedian Joe Lemmo.

J. David Pace, creative director for the Archdiocese of Atlanta, won honorable mention for Graphic Artist/Designer of the Year.

The archdiocesan communications staff received an honorable mention for Best Social Media Campaign for the pastor summer selfie challenge.

In announcing the awards in the program of the Catholic Press Awards Banquet, Committee Chair JD Long-Garcia recalled the words of Pope Francis in urging journalists to “work according to truth and justice, so that communication is truly an instrument for building, not for destroying; for meeting, not for clashing … .”

“That is precisely the kind of communication that is recognized by the Catholic Press Awards through journalism, books and other media,” said Long-Garcia.