Photo by Julianna Leopold

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J.—At the 2026 Catholic Media Conference, the staff of The Georgia Bulletin and the Office of Communications of the Archdiocese of Atlanta earned 17 Catholic Media Awards. The conference was June 16-19 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. “Innovation Anchored in Mission” was the conference theme. 

The award presentations are an annual program of the Catholic Media Association. The program accepts and judges work completed by the association’s members in the United States and Canada from the previous year. The editorial awards presented to The Georgia Bulletin were: 

• A first-place award in the Hot Topic Pope Francis category for a package on the pontiff’s life and death. The submitted pieces were “Atlantans remember Pope Francis for mercy, bold initiatives and art of encounter” by Andrew Nelson; “A Lenten journey of hope,” a column by Archbishop Gregory J. Hartmayer, OFM Conv., and “Atlanta’s Jesuit community highlighting a papacy ‘grounded in joy,’” by Nichole Golden. 
• A first-place award for Best Regular Column, Spiritual Life for contributing columnist Lauretta Hannon. Submitted columns included “The case of the accidental retreatant.” Hannon is a parishioner of St. Mary’s Church, Rome.  
• A second-place win for Best Photo Story, Feature for “Fall Fellowship at Holy Vietnamese Martyrs,” by photographer Julianna Leopold. The vivid and colorful photo essay captured the sights of the annual fall festival at the Norcross church. 
• Second place for Best News Coverage, Immigration for “Read to Succeed, spring fling support refugee children in Clarkston,” “Catholic Charities Atlanta marks 50 years of refugee resettlement service,” and “Faithful participate in national advocacy for immigrants,” by Natalia Duron, and “Living Matthew 25: When I was a stranger, you welcomed me” by Andrew Nelson.  
• Third place for Best Photograph, Immigration/Migration for “Read to Succeed,” for Julianna Leopold’s photo of a young refugee girl selecting a book at a Catholic Charities’ event. 
• Third place for Best Reporting on a Special Age Group, Young Adults for “The art of Vietnamese lion dancing strengthens parish community” by Andrew Nelson. 
• A third-place honor for Best Website, Newspaper for www.georgiabulletin.org, the website of The Georgia Bulletin. 
• Honorable mention for Best Regular Columns in Art, Leisure, Culture and Food for Dr. David King’s columns “Culture and the Church” including “A Catholic approach to the death of a pet.” 
• Honorable mention for Best Feature Writing, Non Weekly for “Departing Sisters were ‘the heart of this neighborhood’” by Andrew Nelson. 
• Honorable mention for Best Reporting of Social Justice Issues- Option for the Poor and Vulnerable for “Read to Succeed, spring fling support refugee children in Clarkston” by Natalia Duron. 
• Honorable mention for Best Photograph, Priesthood, Religious Life or Diaconate for a photo by Julianna Leopold from the 2025 diaconate ordination of a joyful embrace.
• Honorable mention for Best Photograph, Immigration/Migration for “We are the Body of Christ” a photo of Father Michael Lamanna, SJ, leading a rosary walk. 

Judges for the 2026 Catholic Media Awards presented an honorable mention to Georgia Bulletin photographer Julianna Leopold for this photo of Father Michael Lamanna, SJ, immigration counselor and staff attorney at Catholic Charities Atlanta. He led others in prayer in front of the Atlanta Immigration Court on Nov. 13, 2025 as part of the initiative “One Church, One Family: Catholic Public Witness for Immigrants.”

Additional awards for the Office of Communications of the Archdiocese of Atlanta and The Georgia Bulletin were: 

• First place Best Spanish Podcast for “Hablemos de Fe,” hosted by Tatiana Villa and Natalia Duron.  
• First Place in the Best Advertising Campaign category for the Stories that Unite Us, a project coordinated by Samantha Smith of the Office of Communications.
• Second place recognition for Best Initiative or Campaign package for the Office of Communications for the Stories that Unite Us. 
• Second Place for Best Podcast, Social Justice Issues for “Faith and Sustainability,” an award for Kat Doyle and the late Leonard Robinson, hosts; and Allen Kinzly of the Office of Communications. 
• Honorable mention for Best Use of Video on Social Media (liturgical season) for Diocesan and National News Organizations for an explainer video by Allen Kinzly. 

The Chicago-based Catholic Media Association organizes the conference which fosters development and networking among Catholic media professionals throughout North America as well as abroad. 

A June 18 panel discussion on “Communicating the Vision of Pope Leo XIV: Truth, Technology and Evangelization” took place as part of the conference. Panelists included Paolo Ruffini, prefect of the Vatican Dicastery for Communication; Carol Glatz, editor-in-chief of Catholic News Service in Rome; and Augustinian Father Arthur Purcaro, assistant vice president for mission and ministry at Villanova University, and a longtime friend of the pope. Moderating the discussion was Kerry Weber, executive editor at America Media and president of the Catholic Media Association.