NAA Honors Best Newspaper Websites
Posted on August 6, 2002
The Newspaper Association of America's New Media Federation (NAA) has presented the Digital Edge Awards for 2002. Winners received their Edgie trophies during a luncheon ceremony today at Connections, NAA's annual digital-media conference, being held July 13-16 at the Adam's Mark Hotel in Denver. The NAA is a nonprofit organization representing the newspaper industry and more than 2,000 newspapers in the U.S. and Canada.
The Edgie Awards winners were selected from 251 entries in eight categories, including Best Local Online Service, Most Innovative Use of Digital Media: News Event Coverage, Public Service, Best Classified Site and Best Advertiser Program.
Three sites received multiple awards. CJOnline, from The Topeka (Kan.) Capital-Journal, won for its coverage of the Kansas Legislature, its HawkZone sports site and an advertising program for a local casino. The Savannah (Ga.) Morning News took home Edgies for overall news presentation, real estate classifieds and overall excellence as a local online service. Washingtonpost.com, a multiple-award winner in 2001, received trophies for news, employment advertising and as the best local online service in large markets.
The New Media Federation also recognizes a New Media Pioneer whose vision and willingness to mentor young leaders have propelled the industry forward. This year, the award was presented to Michael A. Silver, vice president/strategy and development, Tribune Interactive, Chicago. Silver helped Tribune Co. achieve enormous success in its editorial and business efforts. Silver has served in multiple roles at Tribune, including VP/editorial, marketing and development at Tribune Media Services, VP for new media at Tribune Broadcasting and Tribune Interactive general manager. Silver achieved industry acclaim for championing Tribune's investment in AOL, a $6 million expenditure in 1991 that turned out to be worth more than $1 billion.
The 2002 Digital Edge Award Winners
Best Local Online Service, Circulation less than 75,000
SavannahNOW
Savannah (Ga.) Morning News
Comments: SavannahNOW satisfies the cravings of Savannah,
Ga., residents and visitors with a site that excels in all
phases -- as a news provider, lifestyle guide and marketplace
for cars, homes and employment opportunities. All communities
should be so lucky to have as thorough an online guide to
local living.
Best Local Online Service, Circulation 75,000 to 250,000
NewsOK.com
The Oklahoman, Oklahoma City, in partnership with KWTV News9
Comments: Convergence believers take note: NewsOK.com is quickly becoming the model for all others to follow. The online partnership between The Oklahoman and KWTV News9 goes beyond expectations of intermingled text and video news clips to deliver an interactive crime tracker, highly functional classified verticals and extensive entertainment listings.
Best Local Online Service, Circulation more than 250,000
Mywashingtonpost.com
The Washington Post
Comments: Offered as a personalized version of the core site, mywashingtonpost.com fulfills online readers' desires to create a tailor-made news and entertainment resource. Audience traffic logs show that about 80 percent of visitors to washingtonpost.com live outside of the D.C. metropolitan area, but one would never suspect as much after visiting this all-inclusive cyber guide to the area.
Best News Presentation, Circulation less than 75,000
SavannahNOW
Savannah (Ga.) Morning News
Comments: The site's news coverage and emphasis on intuitive navigation speeds the visitor's path to vital information. SavannahNOW won the "Best News Site" trophy in its circulation category during last year's Edgie Awards.
Best News Presentation, Circulation 75,000 to 250,000
Pilot Online
The Virginian-Pilot, Norfolk
Comments: The commitment to breaking news permeates every page of Pilot Online. Fortified by the support of The Virginian-Pilot newsroom, the site's editors appear to be daring visitors to click the "refresh" button and not find something new.
Best News Presentation, Circulation more than 250,000
Washingtonpost.com
The Washington Post
Comments: During one of the most exciting and challenging years for online news operations, washingtonpost.com once again elevated itself above all others. For the third year in a row, the site impressed Edgie judges with its incisive news analysis, aggressive posting of print reporters' pre- deadline articles and dedication to online-only multimedia coverage.
Most Innovative Use of Digital Media: News Event
Coverage, Circulation less than 75,000
Kansas Legislature - CJOnline
The Topeka (Kan.) Capital-Journal
Comments: No filibusters were required to select this Edgie entry, a premium example of the Web's ability to broaden the scope of political coverage. Visitors can track bills in real-time using database technology. The Topeka Capital-Journal's legislative writers provide Web-only articles and audio clips from their interviews, and politicians submit weekly diaries.
Most Innovative Use of Digital Media: News Event
Coverage, Circulation 75,000 to 250,000
62 Days from Ground Zero - RecordOnline.com
The Times Herald-Record, Middletown, N.Y.
Judge said: Restricted by resources but determined to document the effects of Sept. 11 on its small-town communities, The Times Herald-Record in Middletown, N.Y., developed this simple, moving site. It pays tribute to the more than 60 area residents who lost their lives during the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and to the heroes of Orange, Sullivan and Ulster counties.
Most Innovative Use of Digital Media: News
Event Coverage, Circulation over 250,000
America at War - Washingtonpost.com
The Washington Post
Comments: An impassioned mission that began just minutes after the first plane struck the World Trade Center continues to this day. Washingtonpost.com's approach to the most notorious acts of violence in generations encompasses constantly updated articles from print reporters, streaming audio and video, photo galleries and more than 180 hours of "Live Online" discussions about the terror attacks and all facets of the U.S. response.
Most Innovative Use of Digital Media: Features/Enterprise,
Circulation less than 75,000
Ultimate Twain Guide - Hannibal.net<
The Hannibal (Mo.) Courier-Post
Comments: Hannibal.net spins the concept of a "super-niche site" into Edgie gold with its online ode to favorite son Mark Twain. Even the most nit- picky Twain enthusiast will make new discoveries among the site's collection of downloadable transcripts of books, essays, letters and speeches, photographic tours and maps of Hannibal, Mo., multimedia games, and a daily quote.
Most Innovative Use of Digital Media: Features/Enterprise,
Circulation 75,000 to 250,000
Ballouville - ctnow.com The Hartford Courant
Comments: Strengthened by its ties to The Hartford Courant and a local television station owned by parent company Tribune Co., ctnow.com meticulously profiles the proud residents of one of Connecticut's poorest neighborhoods, Ballouville.
Most Innovative Use of Digital Media: Features/Enterprise,
Circulation more than 250,000
Witness to an Epidemic: AIDS in the Caribbean - Sun-Sentinel.com
South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Ft. Lauderdale
Judge said: Sun-Sentinel.com's emotionally compelling Web documentary received the most votes of an entry across all three circulation categories. The victory rewards the concept of cross-department teamwork, as the news graphics department received a major assist from the online, multimedia, photo, Metro, editing and radio staffs.
Best Vertical Site, Circulation less than 75,000
HawkZone - CJOnline
The Topeka (Kan.) Capital Journal
Best Vertical Site, Circulation 75,000 to 250,000
Packer Insider - Journal Interactive
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel
Comments: Packer Insider confirms that online audiences will pay for exclusive, premium content that covers a topic better than any other publication, online or off. More than 7,500 Green Bay Packers fans depend on the site for updated news, post-game analysis, access to columnists, draft analysis and chats with Packer Insider experts.
Best Vertical Site, Circulation more than 250,000
Metromix - Tribune Interactive
Chicago Tribune
Comments: During the past year, Metromix solidified its reputation as the ultimate resource for Web users in search of dining, drinking, clubbing, and arts and entertainment options in greater Chicago. Metromix was voted "Best Regional or City Guide" in the 2001 Edgie competition.
Best Classified Site, Circulation less than 75,000
SavannahNOW Home Finder
Savannah (Ga.) Morning News
Comments: Programmed for maximum utility and swift navigation, SavannahNOW's real estate vertical delivers a dream package of sale and rental listings. The site serves homebuyers and renters with detailed information about Savannah's neighborhoods, schools and economy, and offers prime advertising space to area brokers and Realtors through cross-media sales packages.
Best Classified Site, Circulation 75,000 to 250,000
Motorway - Los Angeles Newspaper Group
The Press-Telegram, Long Beach, Calif.
Comments: Motorway.com presents an entertaining marketplace designed for new and used-car buyers and auto enthusiasts. Visitors find all of the critical services
-- model-by-model comparisons, access to local dealers' inventory, and financing
and insurance information -- plus car reviews, daily automotive news and utilities such as driving directions.
Best Classified Site, Circulation more than 250,000
WashingtonJobs.com - washingtonpost.com
The Washington Post
Comments: The true test of online recruitment services comes when the labor market tightens. During a tumultuous year for employment advertising, WashingtonJobs.com, a repeat winner from 2001, continued to meet the needs of its customers with resume-management features and virtual career fairs for job-seekers, and customized resume databases, applicant pre-screening and a suite of e-commerce tools for employers.
Best Advertiser Program, Circulation less than 75,000
Harrah's Casino - CJOnline
The Topeka (Kan.) Capital-Journal
Comments: CJOnline.com delivered promotions for Harrah's Prairie Band Casino to online football and baseball fans throughout Missouri and Kansas. The casino's marketing messages appeared in e-mail newsletters, in-print promotions, and Palm Pilot and mobile phone versions of CJOnline's pro sports sites. Jackpot!
Best Advertiser Program, Circulation 75,000 to 250,000
Avada Online Hearing Test - Cox Ohio Publishing
Dayton Daily News
Comments: Now this is an ad you definitely couldn't find in the newspaper: an online hearing test sponsored by a local company, Avada Audiology & Hearing Care. The program reached almost 100,000 unique users during a three-month period and generated four-digit online revenue for Cox Ohio Publishing.
Best Advertiser Program, Circulation more than 250,000
Miller Brewing Company Microsites - latimes.com
Los Angeles Times
Comments: Latimes.com created more than an advertising campaign for Miller. It developed outstanding entertainment and dining guides for Miller's target markets, the Latino and gay and lesbian communities in Southern California.
Public Service, Circulation less than 75,000
Waterfront Renaissance Project - HeraldNet
The Herald, Everett, Wash.
Judge said: Timed to coincide with a major redevelopment project in Everett, Wash., this exceptional example of community-service journalism gave residents the chance to construct their own version of the city's waterfront areas using interactive technology. One judge referred to the Waterfront Renaissance Project as "one of the best sites I've seen in ages."
Public Service, Circulation 75,000 to 250,000
Poisoned: Rhode Island's Lead-Poisoning Crisis - projo.com
The Providence (R.I.) Journal
Comments: This examination of the devastating effects of lead poisoning was developed to serve a local and national audience. Judges praised the project's use of features that are unique to the 'Net, such as an online chat with reporter and photographer, and map of lead-poisoning locations in each of the state's communities produced from a state department of health database.
Public Service, Circulation more than 250,000
Erin's Race - Cleveland.com
The Plain Dealer, Cleveland
Comments: Cleveland.com did more than present the story of Erin Jones, a police offer whose life -- and pregnancy -- were hurled into a crisis when she was diagnosed with cancer. It transformed itself from a local site into a digital support center for Erin's family and a source of education and inspiration for a community of concerned Web users.