The Photo News reels in awards from New York Press Association

The Photo News was recognized for its top-notch reporting this past weekend at the New York Press Association's convention, taking home awards in various categories.

The paper was recognized for its ongoing coverage of Kiryas Joel, earning second place in the Coverage of Religion category for stories written by Investigative Reporter Doug Feiden and Managing Editor Bob Quinn, including: “'Be fruitful and multiply,'” “The Artaud Affair,” “The watering of Kiryas Joel,” and “Well, not so fast.” Judges commented: “These stories do a nice job of explaining the impact the Kiryas Joel community is having on the area. The double-truck graphic accompanying the pipeline story was a nice touch.”

“The Artaud Affair” story by Douglas Feiden also won second place in the highly competitive Feature Story category.

The ongoing coverage on the Town of Palm Tree by Quinn and freelancer Nancy Kriz was awarded third place in the Coverage of Local Government category. Judges praised the work, commenting: “This is an excellent example of thorough reporting. The reporters didn't leave readers needing more information on the subjects. They presented them in a well-thought out manner and left me wanting to know how things turn out in the future. That is what good journalism does, it makes readers want to come.” The collection of Palm Tree reporting includes: “How did we get here?,” “Unchartered Territory,” “Three Minutes,” “The Seed is Planted,” and “The Deciders.”

The paper's sister publication, The Warwick Advertiser, took home first place for its Coverage of Education for the stories written in its Back to School section. Judges commented: “The stories here are well-written, well-sourced and do a good job of tackling broad issues in a local context.” The Back to School section was also awarded third place in the Special Sections category, recognizing the design, advertising, and editorial content in the section.