Thursday, February 15, 2007 Older Editions

Townsman judged best in New England

The Andover Townsman was recognized Saturday as the best weekly newspaper of its size in New England for its editorial page and general news reporting by the New England Press Association.

Overall the Townsman won five awards for being among the best weeklies in New England. More than 350 newspapers from around New England participated in the NEPA competition, submitting almost 6,000 entries.

In the Editorial Page category, the Townsman was competing against newspapers up to 10 times its circulation size.

o The Townsman won first place for its April 20 opinion section designed by editor Neil Fater. The section included an editorial by Fater suggesting a way the town could afford to operate a youth center without cutting services from other departments.

Judges said, "Thought and care were evident in the preparation of this editorial page. It wins first place honors on the strength of its sensible, well-presented editorial position (a must for consideration), its strong letters presentation, and its generally pleasing appearance."

o Reporter Alison McGonagle won first place in the General News Story category for news articles about the difficulties May flood victims encountered in trying to return to their condominiums.

The winning submission was a package of articles by McGonagle and an editorial by Fater pushing those in power to stop dragging their feet on assistance. Judges called the submission "Dogged and detailed coverage, with editorial support, of insurance company's slow response to help policyholders after floods."

o Photographer Tim Jean won a third place Personality Photo award for his picture of farmer Peter Loosigian, which highlighted a story on Andover's disappearing farmers.

"The setting, the face, and most particularly the posture of the subject, make this a memorable portrait," the judges said, in part. "Journalistically this photo succeeds because the elderly Andover farmer represents a genuine slice of our world."

o Reporter Brian Davidson won third place for Business/Economic Reporting for his detailed coverage of an effort to bring a new Interstate 93 interchange into Andover.

"This story has many dimensions, from upset residents to federal regulations to developer influence. Davidson navigates the territory with clarity and thoroughness, walking the reader through a complex situation with solid reporting and writing," said the judges.

o Davidson also won third place for Coverage of a Racial or Ethnic Issue for his articles about Andover High School teacher Ron Francis paying Andover students to work for his Somerville Divestment Project, which seeks to end investment in Israel.

Judges lauded his work saying, in part, "Reporter Brian Davidson takes an even handed approach to a sticky issue - the political views of a high school teacher and how he's recruited students to help his cause."

Also in the Eagle-Tribune family

Other Eagle-Tribune Publishing Co. papers also won awards.

In the daily categories, the Eagle-Tribune earned second place for General News Story for its coverage of the spring floods. Editorial page editor Ken Johnson won third place for editorial writing. David Scott and Rosemary Ford earned second place for Photo Illustration. Reporter Shawn Regan earned a third place award for a story about the impact of a drunken driver.

The Salem News won a first place award for newspaper design for all dailies throughout New England. The paper also won a third place award for its May 2006 flooding coverage. Salem News photographer Kristen Olson won first place for Spot News Photo and first place for Photo Series.

Stephanie Chelf, who writes for The Daily News of Newburyport, won a first place Environmental Reporting award. Chelf and reporter Priti Prabhakar also earned third place for Investigative Reporting.

Gloucester Daily Times took third place in General Excellence in its division.

The weekly Haverhill Gazette won three awards: Editor Jean MacDougall-Tattan won first place for Editorial Writer, and sports reporter Mark Behan won first place for Sports Column and second place for Sports Story.

The Derry News earned first place for sponsorship page, and two third-place awards for Editorial Writer, and Human Interest Feature Story, for an article by Suzanne Laurent.

Awards were presented at NEPA's Annual Better Newspaper Awards Banquet at the Boston Park Plaza Hotel.