The Portland Press Herald and Maine Sunday Telegram swept the major categories for daily newspapers at the Maine Press Association’s annual awards ceremony Saturday night.
The paper won first place for general excellence in the daily, weekend and digital categories.
In all, the Press Herald took home more than 60 awards at the event in South Portland, including two special honors for individual employees. Reporter John Terhune received the Bob Drake Young Writer’s Award, while Peter Filippelli won Advertising Person of the Year.
“I’m extraordinarily proud of this newsroom,” said Steve Greenlee, executive editor of the Portland Press Herald and Maine Sunday Telegram. “This is the hardest-working, most dedicated group of journalists I’ve ever been a part of, and it shows every day in the journalism they produce for Maine’s people.”
This summer, the National Trust for Local News purchased the Press Herald as part of a sale that included most of Maine’s daily and weekly newspapers. The newly formed Maine Trust for Local News also encompasses the Sun Journal in Lewiston, the Kennebec Journal in Augusta, the Morning Sentinel in Waterville, the Times Record in Brunswick, and 17 weekly papers in southern and western Maine, including the Forecaster group. Those papers also took home honors at the ceremony.
Second and third place in the digital category went to SunJournal.com and CentralMaine.com, respectively. The daily editions of the Kennebec Journal and the Morning Sentinel also won second and third place for general excellence, and their combined Central Maine Sunday won third place in the weekend category. Morning Sentinel photographer Rich Abrahamson nabbed the Best in Show award.
Michael Shepherd of the Bangor Daily News won Journalist of the Year.
The Bob Drake Young Writer’s Award recognizes a journalist with fewer than three years of full-time experience in the field. Terhune previously covered the cities of Bath and Brunswick for the Times Record and was a staff writer for The Forecaster. Shortly after he joined the Press Herald in March, Terhune covered a series of shootings in Bowdoin and Yarmouth that left four people dead and three wounded. He later interviewed the man charged with murder, who spoke in a series of calls from Two Bridges Regional Jail in Wiscasset.
“John has quickly made himself an invaluable member of our staff,” Greenlee said. “He’s done a ridiculous number of important, exclusive stories on a wide range of topics in a short period of time. If he’s this good now, I can’t even imagine what he’ll be doing 10 years from now – I just hope it’s with us.”
DJ Martin, director of advertising, said Filippelli builds meaningful relationships with both his clients and his co-workers. He highlighted Filippelli’s listening skills and positive attitude.
“Peter will not sell something to someone unless he feels that it is a good fit for the client and that the product will be beneficial for them,” Martin wrote in his nomination. “Peter listens deeply to his clients and their concerns and needs. He brings value to each relationship that he has.”
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