From the Department of Shameless Self-Promotion: Willamette Week took home 12 awards, 10 of them first prizes, in a five-state journalism contest among Pacific Northwest newsrooms. Our wins included prizes for an investigation into the business dealings of Robert Pamplin Jr.; a look at a beloved city park beset by gun violence; and a detailing of the multistate crime ring trafficking stolen catalytic converters out of a house on Oswego Lake.
The Society of Professional Journalists announced winners in the NW Excellence in Journalism Contest earlier this week. WW competed with medium-sized publications—with six to 20 full-time newsroom employees—in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana and Alaska for work published in 2022.
Read our winning stories below.
Business and economics reporting, first place
“Ghosted” by Sophie Peel
Crime and law enforcement reporting, first place
“From Portland to Jersey” by Lucas Manfield
Hard news feature, first place
“The Trouble at Dawson Park,” by Sophie Peel and Lucas Manfield
Government and politics reporting, first place
“The Advocate,” by Nigel Jaquiss
Health care reporting, first place
“Balloon Effect” and “No Man’s Land” by Lucas Manfield
Investigative reporting, first place
“Trader Bob” by Nigel Jaquiss
Racial equity reporting, second place
“Comeback” by Nigel Jaquiss
Review, first place
“Downtown Dining Isn’t Dead” by Andi Prewitt
Sports reporting, first place
“Will Merritt Paulson Prune the Thorns?” by Anthony Effinger
General news photography, first place
Charter reform measure passes, by Michael Raines (shown above)
Graphics and illustrations, first place
“Weird Summer Tales” by McKenzie Young-Roy
Portrait photography, second place
“The Mystery of the Taft Home” by Danny Fulgencio