Finalists Announced for 10th annual Online Journalism Awards

WASHINGTON, D.C., August 31, 2009 – Finalists for the 2009 Online Journalism Awards, many pushing the envelope of innovation in digital storytelling and information sharing, were announced today by the Online News Association and its partner, the School of Communication at the University of Miami.

A team of 12 journalists representing a diverse cross-section of the industry met Aug. 27 and 28 at the university’s Coral Gables, Fla., campus to select the finalists, which range from independent and nonprofit news and community sites to major media and international organizations. The winners will be announced at the 2009 ONA Conference and Online Journalism Awards Banquet on Saturday, Oct. 3, at the Hilton San Francisco.

“We were regularly awed, inspired and delighted by the quality and innovation evident online today,” said Anthony Moor, Deputy Managing Editor of The Dallas Morning News, who, along with AP Digital’s Director of Online Services Ruth Gersh, co-chairs the Online Journalism Awards Committee.

This year, changes were introduced to acknowledge the important role of emerging technology, the influence of the independent digital journalist and the growth of community reporting efforts. Six awards now come with a total of $30,000 in prize money, courtesy of the Gannett Foundation and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, and the General Excellence in Online Journalism Award was expanded to include “micro sites.”

The finalists are:

Knight Award for Public Service

• The Chauncey Bailey Project
• Michael J. Berens and Ken Armstrong, The Seattle Times, Culture of Resistance
• Toronto Star, Crime and Punishment
• Wisconsin State Journal, Down to a Whisper: State’s Native Languages Threatened with Loss

Gannett Foundation Award for Technical Innovation in the Service of Digital Journalism

• Associated Press, AP Mobile
• Attributor
• Medill School, Northwestern University, News Mixer
• Publish2

General Excellence in Online Journalism, Micro Site

• Center for Public Integrity
• Gotham Gazette
• St. Louis Beacon

General Excellence in Online Journalism, Small Site

• MediaStorm
• PolitiFact, Staff of the St. Petersburg Times
• ProPublica

General Excellence in Online Journalism, Medium Site

• The Daily Beast
• LasVegasSun.com
• NewsOK.com, from the OPUBCO Communications Group Staff
• spokesman.com, The Spokesman-Review

General Excellence in Online Journalism, Large Site

• bbcnews.com, BBC News
• nytimes.com, The New York Times
• Wired.com
• washingtonpost.com, Washington Post Digital

General Excellence in Online Journalism, Non-English, Small Site

• Il Centro, Quotidiano dell’Abruzzo (Italy)
• lainformacion.com (Spain)
• Radio Azattyq, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Kazakh Service (Kazakhstan)

General Excellence in Online Journalism, Non-English, Large Site

• Lanacion.com (Argentina)
• Rue89 (France)
• SOITU.ES (Spain

Breaking News, Small Site

• The Daily Astorian, Gearhart Plane Crash
• The Desert Sun, Desert Hot Springs Gang Sweep
• Pressconnects.com/Press & Sun-Bulletin, Massacre on Front Street

Breaking News, Medium Site

• The Dallas Morning News, Stadium Collapse
• Knoxnews.com, Church Shooting
• LasVegasSun.com, Snow
• NewsOK.com, from the OPUBCO Communications Group Staff, Ice Storm

Breaking News, Large Site

• BBC News, Mumbai Attacks
• Houston Chronicle/chron.com, Hurricane Ike
• The New York Times, Plane Crash in the Hudson

Specialty Site Journalism, Small Site