Evangelist wins national prizes

The Evangelist has been honored with five prizes for excellence in Catholic journalism.

The awards came during the recent annual convention of the Catholic Press Association, which represents Catholic newspapers and magazines. There are 203 Catholic newspapers in the U.S., with combined circulations of 6.5 million readers. The awards, judged by journalists from the religious and secular press, are given for material that appeared during 2002.

The Evangelist won:

* First prize for best editorial on a local topic for "Shared Sorrow," by James Breig, editor. The editorial, which appeared in the July 4, 2002 issue, concerned the removal from ministry of six priests due to child abuse. The judges called it "an eloquent and well-written expression of the sadness and shock -- with a hopeful look to the future." The editorial can be read in the archives section of The Evangelist's website, www.evangelist.org.

* First prize for best portrait for Dave Oxford's photo of Steve Cafiero, whose son died in the 9/11 attacks. The photo appeared as part of The Evangelist's first anniversary coverage of the 9/11/01 attacks. The judges said: "The expression on the subject's face lets us see the hurt he still feels in this emotional photo. We feel his pain. Good lighting, too." The photo is appears on page 2 of this week's print edition.

* Honorable mention to Mr. Breig in the category of individual overall excellence as a writer/editor. First prize went to Margaret O'Brien Steinfels, who retired as editor of Commonweal magazine.

* Honorable mention for best in-depth analysis for the editorial staff's coverage of the abuse crisis last spring and summer. Those stories can be read in the archives section of www.evangelist.org. First prize in this category went to National Catholic Reporter for its coverage of the first anniversary of 9/11.

* Honorable mention for best general news photo to Mr. Oxford for a humorous image of a health instructor and a student at St. Mary's School in Clinton Heights (Jan. 31, 2002 issue). First prize went to Catholic Standard, newspaper of the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. The Evangelist's photo can be seen on page 2 of this week's print edition.

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