The Catholic Messenger received four national awards in this year’s Catholic Press Awards competition. Results were announced last week during the Catholic Media Association (CMA) Conference, held online this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• First Place. Best Coverage of Local Politics. This category, which encompasses all digital and print publications, awards in-depth coverage of local politics via articles, columns, special sections or editorials. Barb Arland-Fye submitted two articles and one editorial for this category: “The Journey Toward Restoring Voting Rights” (March 5, 2020); “Restore Voting Rights” (March 5, 2020); and “Voting Rights Restored in Iowa” (Aug. 13, 2020).
• Second Place. Best Coverage — Immigration. This category, which encompasses all digital and print publications, awards in-depth coverage via articles, columns, special sections, or editorials. Barb Arland-Fye and Lindsay Steele submitted three articles for this category: “Bishop Makes Appeal on Behalf of Immigrant Detainees” (May 21, 2020); “DACA Ruling Encourages Davenport Diocese Leaders and Dreamers” (June 25, 2020); and “Childhood Experience Inspires Sister’s Work with Immigrants, Migrants” (Oct. 8, 2020). Catholic News Service received first place in this category.
• Second Place. Best Regular Column — Family Life. Barb Arland-Fye submitted three columns for this category: “With Love and Faith, From Mother” (Aug. 27, 2020); “Team Mary: Family And Faith First” (Oct. 1, 2020); and “His Mother Kept All These Things In Her Heart” (Dec. 24, 2020). This category encompasses all digital and print publications. National Catholic Reporter columnist Celeste Behe received first place in this category.
• Third Place. Best Reporting of Social Justice Issues — Life and Dignity of the Human Person. This category, open to all digital and print publications, awards publications for an article or column about one of the seven themes of Catholic social teaching. Barb Arland-Fye received third place behind National Catholic Reporter and Rhode Island Catholic for her article, “Blessed are the Family Caregivers” (Dec. 10, 2020).
The Catholic Messenger is a member of the CMA, which has more than 200 publication members and 600 individual members in its association. Member publications reach nearly 10 million households and many more people through CMA members’ websites and social media outlets.
The CMA’s mission is to build and strengthen the value, effectiveness and identity of Catholic media by facilitating the professional development and spiritual growth of its members. Furthermore, the CMA contributes to the church’s mission of communicating the Good News and evangelizing the modern world by engaging and supporting content creators and distributors of Catholic media.
The CMA encourages collaboration not only among its members but also with church leaders, Catholic organizations and with the broader secular media to accomplish the mission of Catholic communicators.
We are thankful to our subscribers and parishes for your support of our weekly diocesan newspaper. You make it possible for us to share the Good News of the Gospel through the lived experiences of the faithful today.
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