MINNEAPOLIS - MinnPost.com and The Bemidji Pioneer are among the winners of the 2008 Frank Premack Public Affairs Journalism Awards, the Minnesota Journalism Center said Saturday.
MinnPost.com and Jay Weiner won in the category of breaking news about public affairs in the metro area, for their coverage of the ongoing Senate recount.
"MinnPost was able to breathe life into a process that moves at a glacial pace and thus keep readers interested in a story of great political importance," the Premack judges wrote. The coverage ran from Nov. 13 to Dec. 20.
For excellence in coverage of breaking news about public affairs in greater Minnesota, The Bemidji Pioneer and political editor Brad Swenson won for their feature of U.S. Rep. Collin Peterson, the Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee. The Aug. 17 two-part coverage focused on Peterson's role in drafting a major farm bill and his efforts to help farms that were fighting bovine tuberculosis.
"The article is especially relevant because it contained candid comments from a national policymaker who rarely talks in-depth with the media," the judges wrote.
The award competition started in 1976 after the death of Frank Premack, a reporter, city editor and assistant managing editor at the Minneapolis Tribune. The award is one of Minnesota's most coveted and celebrated journalism honors.
The other winners were:
_ Excellence in investigative or analytical reporting about public affairs in the metro area: The St. Paul Pioneer Press and reporters Jeremy Olson and Paul Tosto. Their series probed a schizophrenia patient's medical treatment and death.
