Call it a journalistic two-peat. For the second year in a row The Dahlonega Nugget took top honors at the Georgia Press Association banquet, netting first place for General Excellence while also coming away with 17 individual awards during a well-attended ceremony on Jekyll Island Friday night. For The Nugget staff, the recognition was cheerfully received. “This is special. It makes me proud to work with such a talented group of folks. To be named to the top spot for a second time is truly an honor,” said The Nugget’s Publisher John Bynum. “Our staff strives every week to give Dahlonega the best newspaper we can. Also, it wouldn’t be possible without our many Nugget readers and contributors.”
While the newspaper has netted third place honors for General Excellence in previous years, it wasn’t until last year that The Nugget finally broke through and came out on top with an elusive first place designation for Division D Weekly newspapers. It was a pleasant surprise that the staff was able to pull it off again this year.
“This is the one I always want us to win,” said Executive Editor Matt Aiken. “But it’s so hard to do, I don’t want to get my hopes up too much. This year I just went ahead and got my hopes up.”
And those hopes were not let down.
In fact, it was a winning night all around as Nugget staff members were often called to the front of the Morgan Center at the Jekyll Island Club Resort.
Staff Writer Keith Murden won first place for Education Writing for his trio of stories, one which dealt with the tricky topic of whether or not cell phones should be banned in the local classroom.
“Interesting, well-written and engaging stories about educators’ approaches to their work and a hot topic in schools—cell phone use by students,” stated a judge from the Illinois Press Association.
Murden also won second place for Enterprise Reporting on the same topic.
Sports writer Eligha Roper came away with a third place award in the category of Sports Photography.
And Aiken won first place in the category of Serious Column and also Humorous Column.
“Great and funny read!” stated a judge. “Loved the topics.”
Aiken also took first place for Business Writing.
COMMUNITY WIN
The community definitely contributed to the win as well.
Local photographer Erika Collins helped The Nugget net a second place win for magazine cover, with an assist going to Lenny who was the canine cover model for that edition of DAHLONEGA Magazine.
Meanwhile, local columnist Dr. Barry Yedvobnick garnered a surprise first place win for Lifestyle Column.
“Very informative and entertaining,” stated the judge. “It sounds like my next-door neighbor or family doctor giving me common sense medical advice.”
Nugget letter writers deserve their fair share of credit for a first place Editorial Page award as judges were impressed with the wide array of submissions on the page.
“The Dahlonega Nugget’s editorial page proves the notion that a good, strong opinion page will foster reader engagement,” stated the judge. “And what engagement The Nugget gets with multiple letters to the editor (one issue had nine!) on a second (and sometimes third) opinion page.”
The Nugget’s marketing team contributed to the big win as well. A first place design award went to an ad for Adams & Logan Insurance and a second place award for Spirits Tavern—both accounts are managed by Chauna Utterback.
By the end of the night The Nugget also came away with awards for Layout & Design, Headline Writing and Page One design.
“I think it’s a point of pride that our newspaper was recognized in many different areas. Lumpkin County is a lively place to live and work, and I believe our staff does a great job reflecting many of the vibrant aspects of our community on the pages of the newspaper,” Bynum said. “When you read The Nugget, it’s clear that everyone on our team, and our local contributors give it their all, and these Georgia Press accolades reinforce that. It’s a true community effort.”