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The Examiner staff including Stephen ‘Doc’ Watson, Brittany Chaney, B. Scott McLendon, Publisher/CEO Don Dodd, Jennifer Johnson, Sharon Brooks and Kristi Dodd. Not pictured are Kevin Clay and Chad Cooper.
Journalists and supporting staff at The Examiner won a combined 31 awards June 3 at the annual Southeast Texas Press Club awards banquet, earning eight first-place honors, sweeping two reporting categories and bringing home a bevy of accolades to fill the paper’s already packed trophy case.
This year’s event, with a sold-out crowd of 200, was a far cry from virtual events held in 2020 and 2021. Fewer than four members were in the room last year during the peak of COVID-19. This year, the Press Club held the 2022 awards ceremony in its usual home in the ballroom of the MCM Eleganté Hotel.
The Press Club draws most of its membership from Jefferson, Orange and Hardin counties. Press Club members are professionals in media, public relations, academia, public affairs, corporate communication and public information.
Each year, the Press Club sends its contest entries to be judged by another press organization in a different part of the country. This year, the newspaper category was judged by the San Francisco Press Club, an organization comprising award-winning reporters and editors.
The Press Club collectively honored hundreds of winners, with 225 awards announced throughout Friday evening. Local journalists, public relations professionals and members of academia submitted 566 entries for this year’s contest, which featured 77 individual categories.
The Examiner claimed first in eight categories, including news story, investigative reports, special reports, reporting portfolio, news page design/layout, non-news page design/layout, as well as overall excellence in newspapers and magazines. The staff also swept two categories, winning first, second, third and fourth in investigative reports and first, second and third in special reports.
Jennifer Johnson, whose office was already adorned with numerous individual awards – both local and national – honoring her investigative prowess, led the way with seven individual honors. She won first and fourth places in the News Story division; first, second, third and fourth in the Investigative Reports division; and another honor in the Environmental division.
“Prominent coverage of alleged scofflaws provides a public service in warning the public about a possible ongoing fraud threat,” wrote the judge in reference to Johnson’s first-place investigative story about a construction company under criminal watch for scamming clients. “Much good work as shown in these entries shows why the local press is vital in serving the public. Kudos.”
“This is a well-laid out newspaper full of information and timely topics,” a judge wrote about The Examiner.
Having already cemented herself as a local and national award-winning business reporter and editor, Sharon Brooks earned five individual awards including first in the newspaper division for the Southeast Texas Business Journal. Brooks also won awards in the Magazine News Story division for two port magazine stories; a first-place award in the Business Story division; and an award in the Subject-matter Coverage division.
Freelance contributor Doc Watson won an award for his guest column “Heat and Humanity,” published monthly in the Business Journal.
“This is a modern, fresh-looking newspaper with wonderful graphics and a great variety of content. Excellent job!” critics wrote about the Southeast Texas Business Journal.
Chad Cooper is also no stranger to local – as well as national – success as the sports and entertainment editor. He won five individual awards Friday night to add to his accolades. Judges honored him for his reporting portfolio and the SETX High School Football Guide He also won honors in the Photo Essay or Picture Page division; the Headline division; and the Sports Photo competition.
“Good entries. Enjoyed judging talented members of the club!” a judge wrote about Cooper’s entries.
Staff Writer B. Scott McLendon also earned five individual honors at the banquet, claiming first in the Reporting Portfolio division; first in special reports for his coverage of overcrowded COVID units in local hospitals last year; he also won second and third in the division. Additionallywon an additional award in the News Photo division.
“This was a first-class portrayal of the dedication, love, compassion and difficult plight of our nurses during these modern COVID times,” a judge wrote about McLendon’s coverage of COVID-19 inundating local hospitals. “Thorough reporting, solid writing.”
Graphic Designer Brittany Chaney took home three individual awards for her layout and design efforts over the past year. She won first in the Non-news Page Design/Layout category, as well as first and fourth in the Magazine Layout division for her work on Charm and the SETX High School Football Guide.
“Standout design concept. Nice use of color and arrangement of figures to create interest and draw attention in,” a judge wrote about Chaney’s first-place win in the non-news design/layout division. “Overall great page!”
Kevin Clay, who also works at the paper as a graphic designer, earned two awards for The Examiner. He won first place in the News Page Design/Layout category and an award in the Non-News Page Design/Layout category.
“Nice layout and design concept,” a judge wrote about Clay’s design on a Ford Park story. “Good use of assets to create interest.”
The Examiner Publisher Don Dodd praised the wonderful work of The Examiner staff, saying, “While I appreciate the hard work of our staff everyday and appreciate being recognized by our peers, the most important thing to all of us is high-quality, responsible reporting on issues affecting Southeast Texans.”