Kentucky

Herald-Leader named top newspaper in KY awards, staff members receive over 30 accolades

A photo of Rich Strike winning the 148th running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs was named Best Sports Photo by the Kentucky Press Association.
A photo of Rich Strike winning the 148th running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs was named Best Sports Photo by the Kentucky Press Association. Silas Walker swalker@herald-leader.com

The Herald-Leader was named the top newspaper in its division Friday night by the Kentucky Press Association for coverage of reproductive rights, sporting events, sexual abuse allegations among educators, natural disasters, state politics and other noteworthy stories in 2022.

Staff members won 32 individual awards, and crime and courts reporter Taylor Six, formerly of the Richmond Register, was given the Jon Fleischaker Freedom of Information Award for an investigation into the Valley View Ferry. The Herald-Leader was awarded first place in General Excellence ahead of the Louisville Courier-Journal and Bowling Green Daily News.

“2022 was a year of strong journalism for the Herald-Leader as we continued to add newsroom staff and new digital products for our readers. We’re proud to serve this state and the Lexington community, and we’re thrilled that work was recognized by KPA,” Executive Editor and General Manager Peter Baniak said.

Columnist Linda Blackford was awarded first in the Best Editorial Page and Best Editorial Writer categories for topics ranging from election deniers to gun control, with judges noting her “extended variety of opinions.”

In sports, writers Mark Story, Cameron Drummond and John Clay swept the Best Sports Column category, earning first, second and third, respectively, and Ben Roberts’s story on former University of Kentucky men’s basketball player and radio host Mike Pratt’s memorial was named Best Sports Story of the year. In the same category, Story and Drummond saw second and third place awards.

The newspaper’s digital work received accolades as well. Audience growth producer Andrew Henderson won second place for a Twitter Moment highlighting the Eastern Kentucky flooding in July, and third place for hosting an online forum with reporters John Cheves and Austin Horn about the General Assembly session.

Visual journalists Ryan Hermens and Silas Walker swept the Best Video category. Hermens’s video on a mullet competition and the “Wilmore Lawnmower Brigade” were award first and third, with Walker taking home second for visual coverage of the Western Kentucky tornadoes. Hermens received a total of 11 awards, the highest number among the staff.

Hermens and Walker also won multiple news and sports photo awards, with judges praising the Best Sports Picture category particularly as filled with “outstanding work.”

“Our staff is filled with passionate and dedicated journalists who do so much every day to document Lexington and Kentucky. To see their work recognized by an outside group is extremely rewarding,” Managing Editor Lauren Gorla said. “Thank you to our readers and subscribers who help ensure that we’ll be around to tell these stories for many more years to come.”

The full list of awards can be found below:

FIRST PLACE

SECOND PLACE

THIRD PLACE

This story was originally published January 30, 2023 at 1:59 PM.

Profile Image of Lauren Gorla
Lauren Gorla
Lexington Herald-Leader
615-285-9231
Lauren Gorla is the Audience Development Editor for McClatchy’s small and medium markets, leading a team of producers who work to connect our journalism with readers. Prior to this role, she was the managing editor of the Herald-Leader in Lexington, Ky.; senior editor of the Ledger-Enquirer in Columbus, Ga.; and held various digital and editing roles. She’s a 2016 graduate of Georgia Southern University.
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