NEW YORK, NY — (Marketwired) — 10/02/13 — today announced the Company received eight Local Media Association Awards including being named Best Web/Print Combination and being honored for Best Development of a Community Issue.
The , which includes more than 2,000 newspapers in the United States and Canada, presented eight awards to Digital First Media, the second-most honors presented to any company in the competition.
“We are honored to have the work of our teams, particularly those at The Oakland Press and The Mercury, recognized by our peers,” said John Paton, Chief Executive Officer of Digital First Media. “Digital First Media is focused on serving our local communities — from Pontiac, Mich. to Pottstown, Pa. and beyond. We will continue to tell the stories that matter to our communities and focus on finding new and innovative ways to deliver news and information.”
The LMA cited The Oakland Press- (Pontiac, Mich.) ongoing readership engagement when awarding the Best Web/Print Combination Award, which recognizes “the publisher that has proven the value of their products in terms of readership, individualization of content and advertising revenue.”
The Oakland Press- engagement efforts also led to Community Engagement Editor Monika Drake being named the LMA Innovator of the Year. Judges said Drake, who has been with The Oakland Press since 2010, “utilizes social to better her community with news, information and facts.”
The Oakland Press was also awarded second place for Best Use of Multimedia.
The Mercury-s (Pottstown, Pa.) ongoing examination of the impact of heroin — titled Heroin: Fatal Addiction — was honored for the Best Development of a Community Issue. The series — developed over five months by staff writer Brandie Kessler, Carl Hessler Jr. and Frank Otto — was recognized for creating “awareness about a situation or issue that affects a local community.”
The Mercury-s use of the social media platform Pinterest to create a virtual board was also honored by the LMA, winning second place for Best Use of Social Media. Judges said the initiative was a “great way to leverage a highly used social media tool to drive awareness and engagement.”
The Company-s auto vertical was named Best Site Vertical, including automotive, recruitment and real estate. Judges said FYIDriving.com provides “in-depth search criteria” and “offers a breadth of endemic content.”
The Michigan high school sports website site was awarded second place for Best Nice Site. Also, , which focuses on all aspects of car culture, was awarded third place for Best Nice Site.
The Oakland Press was also awarded second place for Best Use of Multimedia.
Digital First Media is headquartered in New York City and jointly manages MediaNews Group and 21st Century Media. Digital First Media reaches 65.5 million Americans each month through more than 800 multi-platform products across 18 states.
Jonathan Cooper
Vice President Media Relations & Employee Communications
Digital First Media
(215) 867-2022
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