Digital First Media and Nine Properties Named Finalist for EPPY Awards
New York, NY (October 25, 2012) – Digital First Media, which operates MediaNews Group, Journal Register Company and Digital First Ventures, received more than 20 EPPY finalist nominations in Editor & Publisher’s annual contest recognizing media outlets that are leading the way in the online revolution.
The international competition, in its 17th year, covers 30 categories ranging from Best News Website to categories covering niche advertising and blogs.
“To have this work recognized by our peers is an honor and we are proud to have a strong showing in this year’s EPPYs. Each day our journalists serve the communities where we live and these nominations are also a reminder that we must continue to excel, to deliver the highest quality news and information and, now more than ever, deliver that news on digital platforms,” said Jim Brady, Editor-in-Chief of Digital First Media.
The Denver Post led Digital First Media with 11 finalist nominations including:
- Best News or Event Feature (1 million unique monthly visitors and over) for coverage of the Aurora movie theater shooting
- Best Use of Social Media for News Service (1 million unique monthly visitors and over)
- Best Crowd Sourcing/Citizen Journalism (under 1 million unique monthly visitors)
- Two finalist nominations for Best News Video (1 million unique monthly visitors and over) for the Waldo Canyon Fire and Heroes of Aurora Theater Shooting
- Best Use of Photography on a Website (1 million unique monthly visitors and over) for The Denver Post’s Media Center
- Best Entertainment Website (1 million unique monthly visitors and over) for Unsinkable, Unimaginable, Unforgettable: The Titanic 100 Years Later
- Best Business Blog (under 1 million unique monthly visitors) for The Balance Sheet which features contributions from Business Editor Kristi Arellano, Deputy Business Editor Greg Griffin, Business Writer Andy Vuong, Business Writer Steve Raabe, Consumer and Personal Finance Writer David Migoya, Energy Writer Mark Jaffe, Business Writer Jason Blevins, Business Writer Kristen Painter and Business Writer John Mossman
- Best News/Political Blog (under 1 million unique monthly visitors) for The Spot, Denver’s politics and policy blog
- Best Entertainment Blog (under 1 million unique monthly visitors) for Reverb, Denver’s leading entertainment and music site
- Best Sports Blog (under 1 million unique monthly visitors) for First and Orange, the Denver Broncos blog penned by Mike Klis and Jeff Legwold
The San Jose Mercury News collected five finalist nominations including:
- Best Daily Newspaper Website (1 million unique monthly visitors and over)
- Best News or Event Feature (1 million unique monthly visitors and over) for The Cost of Dying which examined the cost of medical care and other end-of-life issues impacting families in the Bay Area
- Best Enterprise/Investigative Video (1 million unique monthly visitors and over) for the Cost of Dying video shot by photojournalist Dai Sugano that accompanied reporter Lisa Krieger’s report
- Best News Video (1 million unique monthly visitors and over) for video by Mr. Sugano entitled Lost Voices of September 11 that was part of the newsroom’s coverage of the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks and focused on Flight 93 hero Mark Bingham’s mother who was able to retrieve 44 messages left on his cell phone the day of the attack
- Best Business Blog (under 1 million unique monthly visitors) for Levi Sumagaysay’s Good Morning Silicon Valley blog
The Salt Lake Tribune was recognized as a finalists for Best Daily Newspaper Website (1 million unique monthly visitors and over), Best Sports Website (under 1 million unique monthly visitors), and Best Use of Social Media for News Services (1 million unique monthly visitors and over).
Viva Colorado was named a finalist for Best Spanish-Language Newspaper Website (under 1 million unique monthly visitors).
The York Daily Record and Sunday News was named a finalist for Best Community Service on a Media-Affiliated Website (under 1 million unique monthly visitors) for Finding Their Way Out which continued to track the impact of the Red Lion school shooting of 2003.
Digital First Media’s American Homecomings project – a collaborative effort by DFM newsrooms from across the country chronicling veterans’ return from war – was also named a finalist for Best Community Service on a Media-Affiliated Website (under 1 million unique monthly visitors).
The New Haven Register in New Haven, Conn. and The Daily Freeman in Kingston, N.Y. were among the newsrooms included in Digital First Media’s finalist nomination for Best Crowd Sourcing/Citizen Journalism (under 1 million unique monthly visitors) for coverage of Hurricane Irene where both newsrooms utilized multiple crowdsourcing methods to keep area residents informed of flooding, power outages and storm damage during the days and weeks following the hurricane.
The New Haven Register and Register Citizen’s coverage of Connecticut’s 5th District Congressional Race was also recognized for Best News/Political Blog (under 1 million unique monthly visitors).
Digital First Media’s automotive website FYIDriving.com was also recognized as a finalist for Best Automotive Website (under 1 million unique monthly visitors).
The EPPY Award winners will be announced Oct. 30.
About Digital First Media
Digital First Media (www.DigitalFirstMedia.com) is headquartered in New York City, and jointly manages MediaNews Group and Journal Register Company. Digital First Media reaches 61.5 million Americans each month through more than 800 multi-platform products across 18 states.
About MediaNews Group, Inc.
MediaNews Group, Inc. (www.medianewsgroup.com) is the nation’s second largest newspaper company as measured by circulation, with headquarters in Denver, Colorado. MediaNews Group and its affiliated companies publish 57 daily newspapers and more than 100 non-daily publications in 11 states.
About Journal Register Company
Journal Register Company is a leader in local news and information in 10 states. The Company’s more than 350 multi-platform products reach an audience of 21 million people each month. For more information visit the company website at www.JournalRegister.com.
About Digital First Ventures
Digital First Ventures (DFV) is focused on helping media entrepreneurs incubate, accelerate and validate their start-up companies in the news, content, sales and audience development space. As a division of Digital First Media – which operates more than 800 media products serving 61.5 million customers each month and annual revenues of more than $1.4 billion – DFV is ideally suited to accelerate value creation for media start-ups.
For more information contact:
Jonathan Cooper
Vice President Media Relations & Employee Communications
Digital First Media
jcooper@digitalfirstmedia.com
(215) 867-2022
