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2015 AAN Awards Winners Announced

By Jason Zaragoza
july 18, 2015  06:00 pm
Co-Hosts Baynard Woods and Enrique Limon (Photo by Christy Bryan)

The winners of the 2015 AAN Awards were announced in Salt Lake City today during the association's 38th annual convention. The winners were chosen as the most outstanding from a field of over 920 entries submitted by 71 alternative publications across the U.S. and Canada.

Held every year since 1996, the AAN Awards recognize the best in alternative journalism and are a unique chance for alt-weeklies to compete directly against the work of their peers in cities across the continent. This year the judging was conducted by the Georgetown University Master's in Professional Studies Program in Journalism.



WRITING CATEGORIES

ARTS CRITICISM circulation under 45,000

First Place: Flatfile Is All About Touching; Text Over Texture; and Selfie and Trans Cultures by Liz Cook, The Pitch

Second Place: Finding Vivian Maier; Jodorowski's Dune; and Birdman, or the Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance by Chris McCoy, Memphis Flyer

Third Place: Arts Criticism by Sarah Burke, East Bay Express


ARTS CRITICISM circulation 45,000 & over

First Place: American Sniper Is a Rah-Rah War-on-Terror Fantasy; The Cutest Kiddie Cartoon Ever Made About Hitler; and Brendan Gleeson Shows He's One of the Best Actors Alive by Amy Nicholson, L.A. Weekly

Second Place: Frank's Arrival; The Art of Preservation; and Urban Theater: Still/Here by Anthony Mariani, Fort Worth Weekly

Third Place: Edge of Tomorrow; Magic in the Moonlight; and St. Vincent by Scott Renshaw, Salt Lake City Weekly


ARTS FEATURE circulation under 45,000

First Place: Stranger Than Fiction by Jacqueline Kern and Nick Swartsell, Cincinnati CityBeat

Second Place: What Does a State Poet Laureate Do—and Why Does It Matter? by Chris Vitiello, INDY Week

Third Place: Art Is Not a Crime; More Art to Come; and Where's the Art? by Brian Blueskye, Coachella Valley Independent


ARTS FEATURE circulation 45,000 & over


First Place: 80 Million Paige Views by Rebecca Jacobson, Willamette Week

Second Place: Jason Molina's Long Dark Blues by Max Blau, Chicago Reader

Third Place: Where Television Matters by Zachary Pincus-Roth, L.A. Weekly


BEAT REPORTING circulation under 45,000


First Place: Criminal Justice Reporting (I; II; III; IV; V) by John H. Tucker, INDY Week

Second Place: Immigration Reporting (I; II; III; IV) by Michael de Yoanna, Boulder Weekly

Third Place: Police Reporting (I; II; III; IV; V) by Alyson Stokes, Lagniappe

Honorable Mention: Outdoor Sports Reporting (I; II; III; IV; V) by Elizabeth Miller, Boulder Weekly


BEAT REPORTING circulation 45,000 & over

First Place: Housing Affordability Reporting (I; II; III; IV) by Aaron Wiener, Washington City Paper

Second Plae: Sharing Economy Reporting (I; II; III; IV; V) by Aaron Mesh, Willamette Week

Third Place: Medical Marijuana Reporting (I; II; III; IV; V) by Ray Stern, Phoenix New Times


COLUMN circulation under 45,000

First Place: Columns (I; II; III) by Ashley Trice, Lagniappe

Second Place: Columns (I; II; III) by Kevin Allman and Clancy Dubos, Gambit

Third Place: "Taxi Driver" (I; II; III) by Terry Gibson, Colorado Springs Independent


COLUMN circulation 45,000 & over

First Place: Conflicts of Interest (I; II; III) by Baynard Woods, Baltimore City Paper

Second Place: Columns (I; II; III) by Rodney Carmichael, Joeff Davis, Debbie Michaud, Ezra Morris, Max Blau, Thomas Wheatley, Wyatt Williams, Creative Loafing Atlanta

Third Place: Advice King (I; II; III) by Chris Crofton, Nashville Scene


COLUMN (POLITICAL) circulation under 45,000

First Place: Covert Oops; Morally Exposed; and What's Walsh Good For? by Dan Brooks, Missoula Independent

Second Place: The Republican Approach; McCrory's Sham Unemployment Claims; and Why Roy Cooper Should Follow His Conscience and the Law by Bob Geary, INDY Week

Third Place: Politics of Corruption; 'Religious Freedom'; and A Barbour's Racism by Donna Ladd, Jackson Free Press


COLUMN (POLITICAL) circulation 45,000 & over

First Place: Detroit Worshipping Mike Ilitch; Detroit City Council Doesn't Deserve Transfer of Power; and Our Broken System by Jack Lessenberry, Metro Times

Second Place: How the city cut funds for mental health patients—and spied on them instead; Rahm's Balanced Budget Claims Don't Add Up; and How investment bankers are set to profit from Rahm's preschool plan by Ben Joravsky, Chicago Reader

Third Place: Georgia's Execution Secrecy Law; Exiled to Liberty Plaza; and Big Ol' Gun Bill a Big Ol' Waste of Time by Max Blau, Rodney Carmichael, Joeff Davis, Debbie Michaud, Ezra Morris, Thomas Wheatley, and Wyatt Williams, Creative Loafing Atlanta


ENVIRONMENTAL REPORTING circulation under 45,000

First Place: Bury the Truth by Billy Ball, INDY Week

Second Place: Zoo Gone Wild and What's Poisoning the Bees by Sam Levin, East Bay Express

Third Place: The Mayflower Oil Spill Robbed Michelle Ward of Her Middle-Class Dream by Benjamin Hardy, Arkansas Times

Honorable Mention: Charlotte is Ground Zero for Coal Ash by Rhiannon Fionn, Creative Loafing Charlotte


ENVIRONMENTAL REPORTING circulation 45,000 & over

First Place: The Trampling of the Trinity Forest (I; II; and III) by Eric Nicholson, Dallas Observer

Second Place: Addition by Filtration by Cari Romm, The Village Voice

Third Place: Vancouver Aquarium Bucks National Trend by Keeping Whales and Dolphins by Travis Lupick, Georgia Straight

Honorable Mention: Mosquito-Borne Chikungunya Virus Invades America by Trevor Bach and Dianna Wray, Miami New Times


FEATURE STORY circulation under 45,000

First Place: Second Life by Paul Bowers, Charleston City Paper

Second Place: Finding My Father's Grave by Katherine Thompson, Flagpole

Third Place: Forgotten Assault by Eric Sandy, Cleveland Scene


FEATURE STORY circulation 45,000 & over

First Place: The Girl on the Torture Board by Craig Malisow, Houston Press

Second Place: The Hole Story by Pete Cottell, Willamette Week

Third Place: The Very Merry Un-Gangs of Disneyland by Charles Lam, OC Weekly


FOOD WRITING circulation under 45,000

First Place: Why I've Stolen Over 1,000 Menus and What They Can Teach Us About Cleveland Cuisine by Douglas Trattner, Cleveland Scene

Second Place: The Life, Death and Resurrection of the Craft Cocktail in St. Louis by Patrick J. Hurley, Riverfront Times

Third Place: Bounce, Baby by Mark C. Anderson, Monterey County Weekly



FOOD WRITING circulation 45,000 & over

First Place: What Happens When All-Star Chefs Get In Bed With Big Food? by Mike Sula, Chicago Reader

Second Place: Stall Tactics by Jessica Sidman, Washington City Paper

Third Place: Pure Pop for Now People by Steve Cavendish, Nashville Scene


INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING circulation under 45,000

First Place: The Last Days of Daniel Linsinbigler by Susan Cooper Eastman, Folio Weekly

Second Place: The View from Bridgeview by Paul Bowers, Charleston City Paper



INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING circulation 45,000 & over

First Place: Deporter in the Court by Joe Tone, Dallas Observer

Second Place: The Snitch Who Stole Christmas by Alan Prendergast, Westword

Third Place: The False 48 by Terrence McCoy, Miami New Times


LGBT / GENDER EQUALITY COVERAGE circulation under 45,000

First Place: Moral Combat by Sarah Burke, East Bay Express

Second Place: Gay Is OK: Middle School Kids Fight to Form Gay-Straight Alliance; After Four Meetings, Gay-Straight Alliance at Stanback Middle School Eliminated; Principal Accused of Blocking Gay-Straight Alliance Resigns by Billy Ball, INDY Week

Third Place: And LGBTQ Rights March On in Mississippi (I; II, III; IV; V; VI; VII; VIII; IX; X) by Anna Wolfe, Haley Ferretti, Kit Williamson, R.L. Nave, Joce Pritchett, Eddie Outlaw, Zack Orsborn, Donna Ladd, Trip Burns, and Dustin Cardon, Jackson Free Press


LGBT / GENDER EQUALITY COVERAGE circulation 45,000 & over

First Place: Inside the Gay Wing of Men's Central Jail by Ani Ucar, L.A. Weekly

Second Place: Body Politic by Rodney Carmichael, Creative Loafing Atlanta

Third Place: Same-Sex Marriage Ban Coverage (I; II, III; IV; V; VI; VII; VIII; IX; X) by Judith Davidoff, Kristian Knutsen, Dean Robbins, and Joe Tarr, Isthmus


LONG-FORM NEWS STORY circulation under 45,000

First Place: When the Mind Splits by Sam Levin, East Bay Express

Second Place: Life in a Police State by Susan Cooper Eastman, Folio Weekly

Third Place: SAPD Issues Thousands of Tickets for Homelessness by Alexa Garcia-Ditta and Elaine Wolff, San Antonio Current


LONG-FORM NEWS STORY circulation 45,000 & over

First Place: Photos of a Baby With Confederate Flags and Guns Couldn't Persuade a Court to Prevent a Kidnapping by Kyle Swenson, New Times Broward-Palm Beach

Second Place: In Chicago's War Zones, the Tragedy Extends Beyond the Kids Who Die by Steve Bogira, Chicago Reader

Third Place: Don't Walk by Tessa Stuart, The Village Voice


MUSIC WRITING circulation under 45,000

First Place: Sturgill Simpson Is Outlaw Country's New Felon; Merge 25 Ends Hot, Humid; and The Charitable Efficacy of Cats on the Internet by Grayson Haver Currin, INDY Week

Second Place: The Story of Jimmy Doyle's Country Club; Where Were You on Pharoah Sanders Day?and Jim Mize Will Have Another by Will Stephenson, Arkansas Times

Third Place: Modest Mouse's Isaac Brock's Lyrical Battle With Self-Doubt; On T-Pain's Relationship With Auto-Tune; and Tori Amos Spends Her Career Lifetime in Search of Herself by Ashley Belanger, Orlando Weekly


MUSIC WRITING circulation 45,000 & over

First Place: David Olney Is Still a Contender; Nashville Outlaw; and I Want to Be Sergio Webb by Skip Anderson, Nashville Scene

Second Place: In the City; Former Lives; Katy Perry Reality Tour of Santa Barbara by Matthew Singer, Willamette Week

Third Place: We Are Flying Spiders; A Love Supreme; and Baby Got Backstory by Laura Johnson, The Inlander


PUBLIC SERVICE circulation under 45,000

First Place: Caving In (I; II; III; IV; V; VI; VII; VIII; IX; X) by Tom Nash, Style Weekly

Second Place: Michelle Byrom: An Innocent Woman on Death Row? (I; II; III; IV; V; VI; VII; VIII;IX) by Ronni Mott, R.L. Nave, Oliver E. Diaz Jr., and Donna Ladd, Jackson Free Press

Third Place: Campus Safety, Sexual Assault and a Community in Crisis (I; II; III; IV; V; VI; VII; VIII) by Graelyn Brashear, Lisa Provence, Courteney Stuart, and Nicolette Gendron, C-Ville Weekly

Honorable Mention: Fatal Encounters Coverage and Website by D. Brian Burghart, Dennis Myers, Brad Bynum, Brian Breneman, and Jonathan Buck, Reno News & Review


PUBLIC SERVICE circulation 45,000 & over

First Place: State of Mind (I; II; III; IV; V; VI; VII; VIII; IX) by Jacob Jones, Deanna Pan, Daniel Walters, Heidi Groover, and Young Kwak, The Inlander

Second Place: Why Nashville Schools Are Failing: Speaking in Tongues; Growing Pains; and The Right School by Andrea Zelinski, Nashville Scene

Third Place: Florida's Guardians Often Exploit the Vulnerable Residents They're Supposed to Protect by Michael Miller, Miami New Times

Honorable Mention: First Lady Inc. and follow-ups I, II, III, IV; V; VI by Nigel Jaquiss, Willamette Week



DESIGN CATEGORIES


COVER DESIGN circulation under 45,000


First Place: Covers (I; II; III) by Louis Weisberg, Eric Van Egeren, and Maureen M. Kane, Wisconsin Gazette

Second Place: Covers (I; II; III) by Rebecca Sylvester, Cincinnati CityBeat

Third Place: Covers by Jeremy Fraga, Paul Roustan, Ellen Crenshaw, Scott Murry, Dig Boston

Honorable Mention: Covers (I; II; III) by Dave Kirby, Susan France, and Mark Goodman, Boulder Weekly



COVER DESIGN circulation 45,000 & over


First Place: Covers (I; II; III) by Brian Breneman and Hayley Doshay, Sacramento News & Review

Second Place: Covers (I; II; III) by Corlene Byrd, Marvin Lucas, Elizabeth Brown, Serge Seidlitz, Adam Shane, and Gerad Taylor, Las Vegas Weekly

Third Place: Covers (I; II; III) by Miche Ratto, Miami New Times


EDITORIAL LAYOUT circulation under 45,000

First Place: In Search of William S. Burroughs by Tom Carlson, Riverfront Times

Second Place: 15 Under 40 by Bill LeSueur and Max Marc, C-Ville Weekly

Third Place: Fest for All by Matt DeTurck, City Newspaper



EDITORIAL LAYOUT circulation 45,000 & over

First Place: So You're Thinking About Getting High? by Chris Bovey, The Inlander

Second Place: The Most Wonderful & Weirdest, Saddest and Craziest Time of the Year by Elizabeth Jones, Nashville Scene

Third Place: The Look of Love by Marvin Lucas and Erik Stein, Las Vegas Weekly


ILLUSTRATION circulation under 45,000

First Place: Against Amazon by Shan Stumpf and Ben Wallis, Folio Weekly

Second Place: Johnny Manziel by Oliver Barrett, Cleveland Scene

Third Place: Down with Tillman by Scott Suchy, Charleston City Paper



ILLUSTRATION circulation 45,000 & over

First Place: Boner Awards by Gary William Musgrave, Nashville Scene

Second Place: Scholastic Fantastic by Jeff Drew, The Inlander

Third Place: Body Politic by Wes Duvall, Creative Loafing Atlanta



PHOTOGRAPHY circulation under 45,000


First Place: Photos (I; II; III; IV; V; VI; VII; VIII; IX; X) by Scott Elmquist, Style Weekly

Second Place: Invisible Refugee; Transgender; and Gift Guide by Louie Preciado, San Antonio Current

Third Place: Photos by Nic Coury, Monterey County Weekly


PHOTOGRAPHY circulation 45,000 & over

First Place: Photos (I; II; III; IV; V; VI; VII; VIII; IX; X) by Young Kwak, The Inlander

Second Place: Photos (I; II; III; IV; V; VI; VII; VIII; IX; X) by James Rexroad, Willamette Week

Third Place: Photos (I; II; III; IV; V; VI; VII; VIII; IX; X) by Darrow Montgomery, Washington City Paper


ONLINE CATEGORIES


ARTS & CULTURE BLOG

First Place: Live Culture (I; II; III; IV; V), Seven Days

Second Place: Moogfest 2014, Mountain Xpress

Third Place: Up on the Sun (I; II; III; IV; V), Phoenix New Times


MULTIMEDIA

First Place: Fort Mac to Halifax by Stephanie Johns, Veronica Simmonds, Erica Butler, Elliot Magill, Meghan Tansey Whitton, and Melissa Dube, The Coast

Second Place: The People Issue by Staff, Chicago Reader

Third Place: 24 Hours of Eating by Zach Rausnitz, Jessica Sidman, Carey Jordan, and Jandos Rothstein, Washington City Paper


STAFF BLOG

First: Fresh Loaf (I; II; III; IV; V), Creative Loafing Atlanta

Second Place: Scene and Heard (I; II; III; IV; V), Cleveland Scene

Third Place: Chronolog (I; II; III; IV; V), Austin Chronicle



OUTSIDE-THE-BOX CATEGORIES


CARTOON (listed alphabetically by last name)

First Place: This Modern World (I; II; III; IV; V), Tom Tomorrow

Second Place: The Critical Line, Steve Greenberg


FREE SPEECH

First Place: Fatal Encounters Coverage and Website by D. Brian Burghart, Dennis Myers, Brad Bynum, Brian Breneman, Jonathan Buck, Reno News & Review

Second Place: SFR vs. Governor of New Mexico (I; II; III; IV; V; VI; VII; VIII) by Justin Horwath and Joey Peters, Santa Fe Reporter

Third Place: Fighting to Uncover Hidden PAC Money in Mississippi (I, II; III; IV; V; VI; VII;VIII; IX; X) by R.L. Nave, Anna Wolfe, and Donna Ladd, Jackson Free Press


INNOVATION / FORMAT BUSTER


First Place: McDonnell Trial Activity Book by Ed Harrington and Ned Oliver, Style Weekly

Second Place: Mean Streets by Lisa Sorg, Andrew Edmonds, Candice Jansen, and JP Trostle, INDY Week

Third Place: Faces of Pride by Jesse Fox, Cincinnati CityBeat


SPECIAL SECTION

First Place: Summer Guide 2014 by Martin Cizmar, Matthew Korfhage, Rebecca Jacobson, and Matthew Singer, Willamette Week

Second Place: The Reader's Bar Issue 2014 by Staff, Chicago Reader

Third Place: The 2014 Comedy Issue by Staff, Cleveland Scene
Photos by Christy Bryan