Eagle Observer earns APA awards

WESTSIDE -- The Eagle Observer won a number of awards at this year's Arkansas Press Association convention held in Bentonville June 22-25. The awards were announced at a special banquet on June 25.

The Eagle Observer took first among small weekly newspapers in Arkansas for its coverage of tourism in 2015. The 2015 Community Guide, together with other articles and photographs from the area written and taken by Mike Eckels, Susan Holland and Randy Moll were entered in the contest.

An article and page of photos taken at the Wild Wilderness Drive-through Safari in Gentry by Randy Moll earned a second-place photo-essay finish among smaller weekly papers in the state.

The Eagle Observer website, managed by Moll but filled with local news articles and photos from the entire Eagle Observer staff, took third place among all weekly newspaper websites in the state, an encouraging award, said Moll, since it is the first time the website has been entered in the state-wide competition.

Susan Holland, reporter for Gravette, also received an honorable mention for her feature story entitled "Gravette man plans unique fundraiser for library."

"It's nice to be recognized by other journalists for the quality of our work," Moll said, "but our real effort remains focused on producing a quality newspaper which is appreciated by our local readers."

Judging for this year's contest was done by members of the Nebraska Press Association.

General News on 06/29/2016