05-02-2025
Pioneer secures 30 awards at Minnesota Newspaper Association convention
Feb. 4—BROOKLYN PARK — The Bemidji Pioneer walked away with a record-setting 30 awards for the paper during the
Minnesota Newspaper Association's
158th annual convention.
Expert judges from Illinois reviewed almost 4,000 entries of the MNA members' most outstanding work during the contest period of September 2023 through August 2024 to determine the best of the best.
Winners were honored on Jan. 30 at the Better Newspaper Contest Awards Gala held in Brooklyn Park.
Judges chose the Pioneer as the first-place winner in general excellence, general reporting and headline writing, among multi-day papers up to 5,000 circulation.
"I thought the Pioneer was the strongest in their class because of the breadth of their coverage," the judge said of the general reporting category. "Strong page one stories with a good mix of hard news and features. Thought there were some excellent ledes that brought readers right to the point of the story.
"I liked how the sports pages seemed to have more of a feature approach and then used roundups for results. In general, most stories contained good background for readers. A good newspaper serving its readers well."
The Pioneer also won second place for its use of photography, sports reporting, advertising excellence and typography and design, along with third place in the editorial page category.
The Pioneer's
Summer 2024
edition of inBemidji Magazine secured first place in best magazine design, with the judge commenting "Love this magazine. Bright and colorful." The
Spring 2024
edition also placed second in both the best magazine cover and best magazine reporting categories.
Editor and photographer Annalise Braught won first place for her portrait of a young dancer participating in
the 19th Annual Niimi'idiwin (powwow) in Bemidji.
"The first-place photo of the little dancer floated to the top of the entries," the judge commented. "Great color and composition and I loved the expression of the subject. The pleasing look on the child's face draws you into the photo."
She also got second place for her news photo from the annual
Memorial Day program at Bemidji's Greenwood Cemetery,
with the judge commenting, "The expressions really stand out in this image, and the tension and seriousness of the moment is clear from the posture and body language of the subjects."
Braught placed both second and third in the feature photo category. In second, was another photo of a young dancer from the
19th Annual Niimi'idiwin,
and in third was a photo of children reading at the
recently opened Little Saints Daycare.
She also came in both first and second place for two different photo stories. Her first-place win was for images from the
Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women's Conference
held in May 2024.
"Nice image of Kingbird family inside. I could feel their pain," the judge commented. "Overall nice collection of images that told an impactful story."
Her second-place photo story was a collection of images from the aforementioned
19th Annual Niimi'idiwin,
"Nice colors and images, especially of the children," the judge said. "I really get the feeling of being there."
Multimedia editor Madelyn Haasken came in third for her news photo from the
eighth annual Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women's walk.
"The framing helps give a sense of emotion in this picture, with the intensity of the figure in the middle and the dominance of the red colors capture the viewer's attention," the judge commented.
She also placed first in the feature category for a photo from
Bemidji High School's Unified basketball game.
"Great angle puts the reader right into the action before the game starts," the judge said. "The photographer captured the perfect moment with all technical requirements spot on."
Former multimedia reporter Charley Gilbert also placed second in the portrait category for her photo of a young attendee at Bemidji
ECFE's annual Wheels event.
Braught and Haasken secured first place for their investigative reporting on the
situation surrounding the sexual assault of an 11-year-old girl
and the arrest of 11 undocumented immigrants in September 2023.
Reporter Daltyn Lofstrom came in second place for his hard news story
on steps to restore Red Lake's tribal boundaries leading to opposition and concerns
with the judge noting, "Very thorough reporting, tight writing, interesting topic."
Former Pioneer reporter Nicole Ronchetti came in first for her local breaking news story on
Bemidji postal workers protesting unsustainable working conditions.
She also came in first for her government and public affairs reporting series on the ordeal that spanned from fall 2023 through the following spring.
"Really interesting look at this situation and how it affects postal workers and those waiting to receive a check in the mail," the judge said. "The story about the carrier who hit his breaking point was particularly good. The mix of background and new information as the stories unfolded was excellent. Great work!"
Pioneer sports editor Jared Rubado came in first and second place in the sports story category. In first was his hockey story on the
Beavers dethroning Minnesota State in blowout fashion to win the MacNaughton Cup.
"An interesting contrast between the winning and losing sides," the judge said. "This is a compelling read with an interesting reference to 'Ric Flair's cadence.' Some interesting factoids and strong quotes here too. Well done."
The judge was also impressed with his second-place story on
the BHS football team winning the Section 8-5A Tournament quarterfinal game
commenting, "A strong lede with strong quotes that earned their way into the story. The narrative keeps pushing the reader forward with a creative touch that makes this story stand out."
Rubado also placed first in the sports feature category for a story about then-two-time
para sled hockey gold medalist Chloe Kirkpatrick.
"This was quite the story to share of Chloe's path to win gold with courage and determination," the judge said. "The in-depth story takes the reader from China to the medal stand and makes this the winner in a field of good entries."
Sports reporter Alex Faber secured second place for his football feature on
Bemidji State defensive lineman Marcus Hansen.
"The subject broke all odds to make the team as a walk-on and the author did a great job sharing the story," the judge commented.
Rubado came in first in the columnist category with the judge commenting, "Very strong writing with a personal touch. Pieces feature vivid description, strong, consistent focus and generally tight construction."
Braught received a Herman Roe Editorial Writing Award for her
editorial drawing attention to the lack of awareness
surrounding the missing and murdered Indigenous relatives topic and a need for change in how tribal communities are supported.
"The column about the Indigenous community was well-written and heartfelt and highlights the power of journalism to bring a spotlight to overlooked communities," the judge said.
According to the MNA, the highly-coveted Herman Roe Editorial Writing Award recognizes impactful, meaningful and excellent editorial writing by honoring the single best editorial published during the contest period with judges strongly considering the editorial's significance to the community.
The late widow of Herman Roe established this award in 1965. Herman Roe was a publisher of the Northfield News, past president of MNA and one of the state's outstanding editorial writers.
Pioneer General Manager Christine Olson applauded the entire team for all the hard work that led to the paper bringing home a
record number of awards again this year.
"We believe in the power and importance of local journalism. Our team works tirelessly every day to provide trusted, meaningful coverage that serves our readers and community," Olson added. "While awards aren't the goal, earning 30 honors — including 13 first-place finishes, the general excellence award and sweeping the feature photo category — reinforces that our commitment to quality storytelling in both print and digital is making a real impact."
