FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Feb. 12, 2009

Contact
Jennifer Strom
Managing Editor
The Independent Weekly
919-286-1972
jstrom (at) indyweek.com

DURHAM, N.C. — The Independent Weekly has been honored with 14 awards in two statewide journalism contests: nine from the North Carolina Press Association (NCPA) and five from the North Carolina Press Photographers Association (NCPPA). In the NCPA contest, the Indy‘s editorial staff collected three first places, two second places and four third places for writing, editing, photography and design work. The locally owned alt-weekly known for its investigative reporting and top-notch criticism claimed first place in the investigative reporting category for the third time in four years, and swept the criticism category for the second time in four years. Additionally, three of the paper’s nine awards recognized staffwide efforts: news coverage, appearance and design, and special section.

In the press photographers’ contest, Independent staff photographers collected one first place, two second places, one third place and an honorable mention for work that included coverage of the freeing of a wrongfully convicted teenager, local semi-pro football and the effects of the Iraq war at home.

N.C. Press Association winners:

1st for Investigative Reporting: Staff Writer Matt Saldaña
1st for News Coverage: Staff
1st for Criticism: Contributor Amy White (visual art)
2nd for News Enterprise Reporting: Staff Writer Matt Saldaña
2nd for Criticism: Culture Editor David Fellerath (film)
3rd for Feature Photography: Staff Photographer D.L. Anderson
3rd for Appearance and Design: Staff
3rd for Special Section: Staff
3rd for Criticism: Contributor Adam Sobsey (books)

N.C. Press Photographers Association winners:

1st for General News: D.L. Anderson
2nd for News Picture Story: Jeremy M. Lange
2nd for Sports Picture Story: Jeremy M. Lange
3rd for Sports Picture Story: Jeremy M. Lange
Honorable Mention for Election Photography: Jeremy M. Lange

Founded in 1983 and still locally owned and operated, The Independent Weekly covers news, politics and culture in the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area of North Carolina, with a print edition every Wednesday and 24/7 coverage online at www.indyweek.com. See all the award-winning work at www.indyweek.com/gyrobase/page?oid=44697.