HARRISBURG (Oct. 25, 2019) — Pennsylvania Bar Association (PBA) President-elect David E. Schwager presented awards to winners of the 2019 PBA Media Awards today during the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association’s “News Organization of the Year” brunch at the Hilton Scranton & Conference Center.
Established 40 years ago, the PBA Media Awards Competition recognizes journalistic excellence in news and feature reporting in print and now broadcast and podcast media about the legal system and its operations. The award categories were revised and expanded this year to include television, radio and podcast entries.
The 2019 competition is funded by the law firm of Pietragallo Gordon Alfano Bosick & Raspanti LLP and is coordinated by the PBA Bar/Press Committee. Entries are judged by lawyers, journalists and college professors.
Here is a list of the winners:
Newspapers: 30,000 or More Circulation
- 1st place: Jeff Hawkes, LNP Media Group, “Walking a Fine Line”
- 2nd place: Dylan Segelbaum, York Daily Record/ydr.com, “Pennsylvania Laws That Don’t Always Make Sense”
Newspapers: Under 30,000 Circulation
- 1st place: Jo Ciavaglia, Bucks County Courier Times, “Inmate Suicides Raise Questions for Bucks County Jail”
- 2nd place: Jo Ciavaglia, Bucks County Courier Times, “New Hope Police Taser Confusion Controversy”
Editorial/Commentary
- 1st place: Jason Maddux, Joe Sukle and Louise Sukle, Press & Journal, “We Are Not the Enemy; Borough, Press & Journal Agree to Settle Lawsuit over Advertisements”
- 2nd place: Dan Robrish, The Elizabethtown Advocate, “Pa. Auditor General’s Report Gives Case for Legal Marijuana, et al.”
TV: Philadelphia and Pittsburgh Markets
- 1st place: WTAE-TV, “Domestic Terrorism vs. Hate Crime”
TV: All Other Pa. Markets (not including Philadelphia and Pittsburgh)
- 1st place: PCN, “PCN’s Election Night Coverage 2018”
Radio and Podcasts: All Pa. Markets
- 1st place: An-Li Herring, 90.5 WESA, “Decades After Landmark Lawsuit, Are Allegheny County Public Defenders Still Overworked?”
- 2nd place: Lindsay Lazarski, Min Xian and Emily Previti, Keystone Crossroads, “No Justice for All: Pennsylvania’s Unequal Access to Public Defense”
The first-place winner in each category of competition receives $400 and a plaque and the second-place winner in each category receives $100 and a certificate.
Founded in 1895, the Pennsylvania Bar Association strives to promote justice, professional excellence and respect for the law; improve public understanding of the legal system; facilitate access of legal services; and serve the lawyer members of the state’s largest organized bar association.