The Augusta Press was proud to take home 11 awards on Friday evening at this year’s annual Georgia Press Association convention in Jekyll Island.
Celebrating the newspaper’s third anniversary, staff from The Augusta Press were once again honored to receive third place for general excellence in Division F of weekly newspapers for a third consecutive year.
After launching in January 2021, The Augusta Press quickly became a respected paper within the CSRA, thanks to the dedication of real estate mogul Joe Edge, Executive Editor Debbie van Tuyll and other local journalists with a hungry desire to revitalize news from a local standpoint.
Continuing to shine, judges from Texas newspapers also awarded TAP staff first place for breaking news writing in Division F, first place for editorial writing in Division F, and overall first place in Community Service for weekly newspapers – a highly coveted recognition – for articles written during 2023.
Skyler Andrews received first place for business writing in Division F (smaller and digital papers) for an article detailing how downtown bars were adapting to a New Year’s blue law restriction. Andrews said the award was incredibly humbling.
“The job entails striving to keep people informed and, ideally, doing so as clearly, eloquently and efficiently as possible. So one is just hoping to pull that off,” he said. “It’s an honor to be recognized, of course, but especially when you work in the company of those who do this especially well.”
Scott Hudson, known at TAP for his weekly column and informing readers about underrated community tidbits, won first place for feature writing in Division F. Hudson said he was proud to be a part of a staff that shines among so many journalists in Georgia.
“It’s always flattering to be recognized by your peers, but to see virtually the entire staff of a newspaper recognized is pretty amazing,” he said.
Speaking on behalf of Nathaniel Jones, who won first place for sports photography in Division F, Sports Editor Gabriel Stovall said he was proud to work with multiple talented sports photographers, writers and content creators.
“Covering the Augusta-area sports scene is kind of a reward within itself. But it’s always exciting to get recognition for the work that you do,” Stovall said. “Nate does a great job, and I’m excited for all that we have planned for our readers in the weeks and months to come.”
Managing Editor Stephanie Hill, who won second place for education writing in Division F, said she enjoys reporting on education because there is always something interesting to cover.
“From graduations to student achievements to visits from the local animal shelter, there’s always something fun and exciting happening,” she said. “I was honored to receive second place for my education coverage for last year and look forward to continuing to cover education in the CSRA.”
Edge, who won third place for serious columns in Division F, said he was honored to be awarded this year for sharing his opinion with the Augusta community, as the last time he won an award for writing was in 1988.
“It was actually published in the Augusta Chronicle, and I was in first grade. It was a poem about Christmas,” he said. “I enjoy getting to write periodically but, the credit for any award I win should really go to those that edit what I write. It takes a team to put out good articles, and we have a great team.”
Other recognitions earned included Liz Wright’s second place award for feature writing in Division F and Susan McCord’s third place award for breaking news writing in Division F.
“We are constantly overwhelmed by the amount of support we receive from the public and in particular our subscribers,” Edge said. “Our staff continues to increase the quality and quantity of content that we produce, and we plan to continue that trend as well as adding new features to our platform.”
