RED BANK – The Two River Times won several awards in the New Jersey Press Associations 2017 Better Newspaper Contest, the trade association announced Wednesday.
In the Editorial contest for weekly papers with circulation under 6,500, reporter Jay Cook won the first place, Responsible Journalism – First Amendment Award for his coverage of how government transparency was reinforced by a recent Open Public Records Act decision. His story also highlighted the efforts of local citizen activists in Middletown and Holmdel who regularly attend government meetings, film the proceedings and share on social media.
Cook also won a second place feature writing award for his photos and story about a Middletown equine therapy program that pairs horses and military veterans suffering from PTSD, and another second place feature award for his article about the retirement of Rumson’s popular mail carrier, photographed by Tina Colella.
His story about the threat to the state’s fluke fishing industry, as felt in the Atlantic Highlands and Belford fishing communities, won third place in the business and economics writing category.
Senior reporter John Burton was honored for his coverage of elections and politics for his body of work, as exemplified by articles about former state Sen. Jennifer Beck’s reflection on her 2017 election loss, local Republican energy heading into the 2017 elections and an interview with the county Democrats’ new chairman, David Brown.
Writer Mary Ann Bourbeau won a first place award for a feature about the relationship of Fair Haven illustrator Mike Quon and his 103-year-old father, Milton Quon, one of Disney’s original animators. Both Quons hosted an art exhibit in Red Bank last year.
News editor Christina Johnson won first place for a portfolio of headline writing, for titles such as “Red Bank Merchants Circle Round, Looking for a Way Out of Parking Problems.”
In the Advertising category of the contest, production manager Chris Draper won three first place awards in the weekly under 6,500 division for Best Real Estate Ad (Public Open House), Best Ad for Retail Business (Holiday Gift Certificate) and Best Community Service or Shared Ad (Fair Haven Holiday).
Draper also took second place awards for Best Use of Small Space-Black and White (One of a Kind Gift Boxes) and Best Large Space Ad-Color (Does Aspirin Reduce the Risk of Colorectal Cancer?)
