The Presbyterian Outlook received top honors at the Associated Church Press (ACP) 2023 annual conference in Chicago this week. The ACP awards recognize excellence in faith-based media — including magazines, news services, online media and podcasts.
This year, the award contest included 58 organizations, 78 categories, and 728 entries. The Presbyterian Outlook – an independent, nonprofit publication – won eight awards at the ACP “Best of the Church Press” ceremony, including:
Personal experience, long format: An honorable mention for “None of us knew” by Dartinia Hull, managing editor
Denominational politics, long format: An honorable mention for “2022 General Assembly to consider pressures on small churches and presbyteries” by Leslie Scanlon, reporter
Scholarly article: An honorable mention to “The right to anger” by Johanna W.H. van Wijk-Bos
James Solheim Award for editorial courage: An award of merit for “Listening and learning” by Teri McDowell Ott, editor/publisher
Theme issue, section or series of a magazine or journal: An award of merit for “Trust Black Women”
Convention or meeting coverage, Newspaper, newsletter, news service, website or blog: An award of excellence for news coverage of the 2022 PC(USA) General Assembly
Of the GA coverage, judges wrote: “In a crowded field of event coverage, this is the standout entry. This is true news writing in which deeper context and background are given to news stories to ensure the reader understands the implications of the decisions. Paired with strong photography and an objective lens, this is what convention and meeting coverage aspire to be on its best days.”
Personal experience, long format: An award of excellence for “The labor” by Rose Schrott Taylor, digital content editor
Of “The labor,” judges wrote: “Evocative prose and syntactic structure subtly direct the pacing of the reading, helping to affect an engaging reader experience. Using a series of vignettes as a mode of delivery, she tells her story through vivid word pictures detailing intimate snapshots of specific moments of time — in this case the perpetual cycle and spiral of love and loss that dominated the landscape of her family’s life during COVID.”
Website redesign: An award of excellence for pres-outlook.org
Of the website redesign, judges wrote: “The redesign concept of pres-outlook.org uses visuals more boldly and neatly than its previous design. With an emphasis on clean and simple, the site makes for a user-friendly experience. It presents numerous features in a pleasing and informative way.”
The ACP is a professional organization of member publications, including the Outlook, “with a commitment to excellence in journalism as a means to describe, reflect and support the life of faith and the Christian community,” according to its mission statement.
