SBJ captures two national awards

SBJ this weekend received a gold award for its Web site, sbj.net, during the Los Angeles-based association’s annual summer conference held June 1–3 in Little Rock, Ark.

Dee Dee Nilsen manages SBJ’s Web site, and she and other editorial staff members contribute articles and photos on a daily basis.

SBJ also received a silver in the Best Cover category for the Nov. 14, 2005, issue designed by Aaron Scott. The lead story, "Jumping into New Markets,” was a look at Bass Pro Shops’ record number of store openings nationwide.

Last year, SBJ took home its first AABP award for an investigative piece on Bass Pro’s expansion, written by Editor Eric Olson.

AABP’s Editorial Excellence Awards competition recognizes excellence in journalism, photography and design achieved by regional business publications. A record 61 publications submitted 680 entries in 28 categories. Participating business publications were from as far away as Australia, Canada and Hawaii.

Professor Daryl Moen of the University of Missouri School of Journalism coordinated the contest, judged by about 30 MU faculty members.

What the judges said:

• Best Web site, Gold: Springfield Business Journal, www.sbj.net, Dee Dee Nilsen

”This is the little newspaper that can. Sleek, sophisticated use of color in the navigation bars sets a pleasing frame for a well-organized site. Fast-loading pages highlight effective yet unobtrusive advertising, and its e-forms could be a model for others. And to top it off, this site has strong contact pages and easy-to-use RSS feeds.”

• Best Front Page, Silver: Springfield Business Journal, Aaron Scott

”The challenge of illustrating a story with no obvious photographic solution is solved with a clever photo illustration and a solid art headline. The display type gives the reader all the high points of the story before a single word of body copy is read. The light blue is a nice complement to the package without hurting readability. The stand-alone briefs on the left rail are also effective ways of teasing content inside.”