The News Tribune staff won 22 awards, including eight first-place honors, in the dailies division of the Missouri Press Association's 2023 Better Newspaper Contest.
The News Tribune staff as a whole earned first place in the General Excellence category.
"This is a newspaper clearly created with readers in mind," the judges wrote. "The layout is welcoming, the content selection is on point, the ads are bright and attractive, the writing is fairly tight. Excellent teamwork all around here."
The News Tribune staff also took first place in Best Overall Design and Tony Hawley won first place for Best Front Page. Anakin Bush won first place for Best Feature Story for his story, "Former cowboy gets chance to ride again." Julie Smith won first place for Best Feature Photo for her image titled "Garden."
Greg Jackson won first place for Best Sports Photograph for "Safe at home" and Best Sports News Story or Package for "Fatima state title."
Joe Gamm won first place for Best Military Story for "Heart-Wrenching Testimony." Gamm also won second place in Best Feature Story for "Tornado recovery likely reaching final days."
Former News Tribune photographer Eileen Wisniowicz won second place for Best News Photograph for an image of Bobby Bostick, and Jackson won second place for Best Sports Photograph for "Avoiding the tag."
Ryan Pivoney won second place for Best Story About Religion for "Out of the dark," and former Design Editor and HER Magazine Editor Molly Morris won second place in Best Non A1 Page Design for "I scream, you scream!"
Anna Campbell won third place Best News Story for "A turbulent transition," while Gamm, Cameron Gerber and former News Tribune reporters Anna Watson and Claudia Levens won third place Best News or Feature Series for a series of stories on a lack of affordable housing in the Jefferson City area.
Smith won third place for Best News Photo for her photo titled "Fire March 30." Jackson won third place in the Best Sports Photograph category for his photo titled "Luke Northweather dunk."
Jackson also won third place for Best Sports Feature Story for "Decade of hairs." Pivoney won third place in the Best Coverage of Rural Life or Agriculture category for "Shear demand."
The News Tribune staff also won third place for Best Non A1 Page Design for "To grill or not to grill," and Layne Stracener won third place for Best Video for "A Christmas Wish -- Special Learning Center."
The News Tribune's sister papers also brought home awards this year. The Fulton Sun's Robby Campbell won second place in Best Sports News Story or Package for "Determined coach, big heart: Celebrating the life of Phillips," and Bush, the editor, won second place in Best Coverage of Government for "Candidate elaborates on views at House 49 forum."
The California Democrat's Garrett Fuller won third place in the Best Business Story category for "California barber celebrates 70 years of cutting hair."