SBJ wins third-straight Gold Cup at state newspaper contest

Springfield Business Journal received its third-straight statewide Gold Cup award at the Missouri Press Association's Better Newspaper Contest.

With 25 awards, SBJ was No. 1 in its category of weekly publications with a print circulation of 2,001 to 5,000 to take home the Gold Cup. Five publications statewide won Gold Cup awards during the ceremony held Sept. 13 in Wildwood.

“I am incredibly proud of my team at Springfield Business Journal for another outstanding year of award-winning coverage. These awards are the product of the hard work we do every day for our readers to cover the news our business community needs to know,” said SBJ Executive Editor Christine Temple. “My colleagues are hardworking, principled and talented. I’m honored to work alongside them.”

Below is the list of SBJ awards, with judges' comments when provided.

First place
• Best Overall Design: "Great use of photos, graphics, placement of stories to create a cohesive storytelling palette."
• Best Page Design for "Accommodating All" by Heather Mosley: "Reader drawn into the story with a creatively created page which quickly communicates highlights and significant aspects of the story."
• Best Breaking News Story for "Mercy reaches pediatric agreement, CoxHealth officials ‘surprised’" by Geoff Pickle: "Complicated story explained quickly."
• Best Feature Story for "From Success to Significance" by Christine Temple: "What a story about an incredible person. The way the story was told points out what an impact this person made on so many lives. It tells a story of a true leader and tells it well. Nice work."
• Best Feature Photograph for "Business Spotlight: Horsing Around" by Tawnie Wilson: "Excellent lighting, excellent highlighting of subject. Captures the energy of the event perfectly."
• Best Business Story for "Branson invests $6M in Chiefs partnership" by Mike Cullinan: "This is a fascinating story about a unique business and tourism opportunity, with detailed information about the extent of the city's partnership with the Chiefs and about the impact that partnership may have."
• Best Story About Government for "Developers respond to city’s blighted property list" by Karen Craigo: "This is a solid example of clear, accessible government reporting. The lead is strong and draws readers in before transitioning to a nuanced, well-sourced policy story. The writing is polished, and the story thoughtfully balances city efforts to increase accountability with the unintended impacts on small developers. The inclusion of strong quotes and relevant photography elevates the presentation. Good work!"
• Best Election Story for "When Values Collide" by Karen Craigo: "An unusual story on politics ... in the workplace. Should workers be limited in expressing their political views? Excellent sourcing, writing. Though workforce employees weren’t included, professional administrators and consultants were. Limiting political dialogue among employees may also conflict with First Amendment rights to free speech. This story offers a good upper-level discussion"
• Best Story About Education for "Remanufacturing Education" by Karen Craigo: "A profile that goes deeper; nice writing in here, such as: 'His directness is at home in the board room, but it can clank like a monkey wrench against the walls of the ivory tower.'"
• Best Story About the Outdoors for "Gone Fishin'" by Mike Cullinan: "Interesting and well-written piece that captures the essence of how technology can help ease solitude. Too, how technology is entering the realm of hobbies and pastimes by connecting people with similar interests who may not pursue them out of inhibition. Also, how necessity is truly the mother of invention. Nice use of fishing terms as well."
• Best Story About Marginalized or Underrepresented Communities for "Technology opens doors for blind people" by Karen Craigo: "Superb reporting and writing. A technology piece that qualifies as warm-fuzzy story can be a rare thing. I suspect museums for the sight-impaired are just a promising start."
• Multimedia Reporting for "No Ceiling" by Christine Temple and Tawnie Wilson: "Loved the layout and questions!"
• Best Headline Writing: "All the headlines were appropriate for the story and were catchy. Loved the page design as well."

Second place
• Best Page Design for "Crafting Fear" by Rebecca Green: "Photos, typography, fold into a design which informs and draws in the reader."
• Best Breaking News Story for "MSU board votes unanimously to keep president on board" by Karen Craigo and Geoff Pickle: "Man who arranges vegetables into male genitalia gets promoted to a possible half-million-dollar yearly salary."
• Best Feature Story for "Tradition in Store" by Karen Craigo: "This is more than just a story. It is a look at life and the way it should be lived. Enjoyed every word and also loved how the story was told. Nice piece of writing."
• Best News or Feature Series for "Economic Growth Series": "This series holds a lot of important information. It provides details in both an informative and concise way that surely benefited the community. You can tell they put a lot of work into it."
• Best Feature Photograph for "Day in the Life with Carol McLeod" by Rebecca Green: "Interesting composition, great judgment in choosing to use black and white. Directs the eye toward the subject and makes the viewer want to know more about the story."
• Best Story About Religion for "Springfield’s Latter-day Saints members eagerly await temple" by Karen Craigo: "This is excellent reporting that blends a thorough regard for the financial and the real estate angles of the news with an engaged attention to what the temple will mean for Springfield's Latter-day Saints community."
• Best Story About Education for "Graduating to Work" by Mike Cullinan: "Complete description of the program; nice selection of a lead quote."

Third place
• Best Front Page
• Best Page Design for "Mind on Money" by Rebecca Green: "From first glance at the page it is clear what the reader will explore in the story."
• Best News or Feature Series for "Business of the Arts" by Karen Craigo: "A collection of compelling features that highlighted uniquely talented artists."
• Best Feature Photograph for "Business of the Arts: Tradition in Store" by Heather Mosley: "Brings the atmosphere of the performance to the readers. Very nice composition."
• Best Business Story for "Dress for your Day" by Karen Craigo: "This is an interesting piece about the changing appearance of the business world, with enlightening interviews and an engaging leading graphic."

Other publications in the region that received awards at the Better Newspaper Contest are the Springfield News-Leader, with 18 awards, including five first-place honors, and the Branson Tri-Lake News with two awards, both first place.