Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, February 3, 1991 TAG: 9102030133
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: From staff reports
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
This is the second year in a row the Roanoke paper has won the award, which was presented Saturday at the winter meeting of the Virginia Press Association in Richmond.
The Times & World-News led six entries in the over-30,000 circulation category. The Potomac News of Woodbridge was chosen from among five entries in the under-30,000 circulation group.
Also Saturday, Times & World-News staffers won 15 awards from the VPA, including one first-place writing award and one first-place award for photography.
The Copeland competition was judged by Dale Gaston, retired professor of journalism at the University of Missouri.
Of Roanoke's entry, Gaston wrote, "The Times & World-News has done a masterful job in serving its community with the news and editorial coverage of a number of significant social, economic and political problems.
"The newspaper has made a tremendous investment in time, talent and dollars to do this job," Gaston wrote.
The Roanoke newspaper's entry included:
Coverage of the United Mine Workers strike against Pittston Coal Group. "Coverage of the UMW strike deserves special note," Gaston wrote. "There was a good variety of stories dealing with the problems of the strike. The coverage appeared fair for both labor and management. Articles dealing with the impact of the strike on individuals in the community were excellent."
"Thunder in the Coalfields," a post-strike special report that went behind the scenes to explain why the strike had taken place.
Coverage of the proposed consolidation of Roanoke City and county.
"Virginians at Risk," a series of stories about abuse and neglect in the state's adult homes.
A series about hiring practices in the Roanoke police department.
A series on life, death and medical ethics in the University of Virginia hospital's intensive-care unit.
Coverage of environmental hazards at the Kim-Stan landfill in Alleghany County.
The Copeland Award was established in 1949 by the family of the late Walter Scott Copeland, a four-term president of the VPA and a newspaper editor from Richmond and Newport News. The award stresses editorial leadership as well as community service above and beyond a newspaper's circulation area.
Among the VPA awards, first place in the spot news category went to staff writers Mary Bishop, Victoria Ratcliff, Laurence Hammack, Mark Layman and Mike Hudson for their coverage of a fire that killed four elderly residents of Shenandoah Homes in Roanoke County on Dec. 14, 1989.
Staff photographer Don Petersen won first place in the picture story or essay category for a series of photos titled "Mom's Wish," about a 6-month-old child from Roanoke who was awaiting a bone-marrow transplant.
Staff writers Monica Davey and David M. Poole placed second in general news writing for their coverage of the trial of Jens Soering, who was convicted in Bedford County of killing his girlfriend's parents in 1985.
Medical writer Charles Hite won second place for the series of stories on life in intensive care at the UVa hospital.
Former editorial page editor Gene Owens, who left the paper in January 1990, won second place in column writing.
In addition, the newspaper's staff took second place for editorial pages and general makeup, and third place for front page and excellence of single editions.
Other award winners were:
Staff writer Daniel Howes and photographer Petersen won third place in the combination pictures and story category for a feature story on traditions and life at Virginia Military Institute. The story was written soon after the U.S. Justice Department filed a lawsuit to overturn VMI's tradition of male-only enrollment.
Staff writers Paul Dellinger, Greg Edwards, Dwayne Yancey, Douglas Pardue and Bishop placed third in the general news writing category for daily news coverage of the Pittston strike.
Ratcliff, Dellinger, Edwards, Yancey, Bishop and Pardue placed third for in-depth/investigative reporting for "Thunder in the Coalfields," the special section on the coal strike.
Photographer Stephanie Klein won third place in the picture story or essay category for photos that illustrated the series of stories about abuse and neglect in Virginia's private adult homes.
Photographer Keith Graham, copy editor Tim Van Riper, Assistant Managing Editor Roger Holtman and Graphics Director Steve Stinson placed third for special sections.
Pardue placed third in the business and financial writing category for coverage of the financial dealings of fraud artist Stephen Lucion. Lucion, a former Roanoke real-estate agent, and Vinton accountant Elmer Craft conned 85 investors out of more than $2 million in a shopping-center investment fraud.
by CNB