The St. Albert Gazette repeated as the top community newspaper in Alberta, completing a sweep of provincial and national titles in addition to continental honours.
Judges with the Alberta Weekly Newspaper Association named the Gazette Best All-Around Newspaper in its circulation during an awards banquet on Friday. Judges gave the paper a total score of 828.2 out of a possible 1,000 points. The paper also placed second for Best Editorial Page and Best Sports Page.
The provincial honours come on the heels of a first place victory from the Canadian Community Newspapers Association (CCNA). The Gazette won Best All-Around Newspaper in its class at the CCNA's annual awards ceremony last month.
"The St. Albert Gazette was the number one choice because of its better than average front page, easy-to-read layout, strong photography and writing," wrote CCNA judge Peter Macintosh.
"This solid newspaper has an ability to make photos look interesting, along with interesting and well-written articles. The front-page photos were interesting and artistic, and the editorial pages were effective. The sheer quantity of letters to the editor indicates a strong readership for this strong paper."
The Gazette picked up seven CCNA awards in total. Co-editor Peter Boer won first place in Best National Editorial for his piece on the federal government's proposed legislation calling for a sex offender registry.
Reporter Ryan Tumilty placed third for Best Historical Story for his story about the restoration of a neglected rural cemetery.
Photographer Ben Lemphers took second in Best Photo Essay for his documentation about the life of a 23-year-old Métis man, work published in SEE Magazine, a sister publication of the Gazette.
Former Gazette photographer Jeremy Broadfield won third place in the same category for his raucous coverage of the Rainmaker Rodeo.
Another Gazette photo alumnus, James Maclennan, took third place in Best Sports Photo for an outstanding image of a rugby strong-arm where the player's finger poked an opponent in the eye.
Kevin Ma received honourable mention in Outstanding Reporter Initiative for his efforts conducting St. Albert's first ever passive air quality monitoring study.
The Gazette also placed second for Best Holiday Edition, and third for Best Editorial Page.
Gazette leads the way at SNA
The Gazette led all weekly newspapers with nine awards from the Suburban Newspapers of North America (SNA), announced in mid-February.
The efforts of Gazette writers Anna Borowiecki and Scott Hayes propelled the paper to second place in Best Entertainment/Lifestyle Section. The Gazette also placed second in Best Non-Page One Layout, and third for Best Sports Section, another award honour for sports editor Jeff Hansen.
Former civic affairs reporter and current co-editor Bryan Alary won third in Best Continuing Coverage for his reporting on the City of St. Albert's 2009 budget, efforts that included regular newspaper stories and an online blog.
Boer once again flexed his editorial writing skills by placing third in Best Editorial Writing.
The Gazette's photography department took three SNA awards, including a first for Broadfield in Best Photojournalism for coverage of the Rainmaker Rodeo. Maclennan won second in Best Feature Photo for an image of a gun-toting man walking down a residential street on the lookout for crows. Maclennan also took third in Best News Photo for a fiery crash near St. Albert.
The Gazette's Green Guide, a supplement highlighting environmental issues, received an honourable mention for Best Special Section.
