Several of you have asked for the transcript from the 2007 Digital Edge Awards ceremony. The awards ceremony was Jan. 28, 2007 at the Newspaper Association of America Marketing Conference in Las Vegas. The press release on the event is a good summary (since the following transcript itself is rather long). The list of winners and list of finalists (both of which have links) are also available.
This is the final draft of the awards ceremony speech, and the actual event may have been slightly different. If you have any questions about this or would like to volunteer to judge next year's Digital Edge Awards, e-mail me at beth.lawton@naa.org.
- Beth Lawton
Beth Lawton: We’re so please to present the best of the best in digital media tonight. We will be announcing winners by category and circulation level, so if your publication is called as a winner tonight, please just stand up and wave so we all know who you are, and at the end of the ceremony we’ll ask all the winners to come up on stage.
We asked for your entries in October and you definitely sent them in – we received a ton of entries. This truly is a peer-review process. We found more than 20 volunteer judges – multimedia producers, vice presidents, directors and general managers of online operations and others. They spent hours pouring over entries, writing comments and grading them all on a 1 to 10 scale for strategy, creativity, adaptability and impact.
In some categories, the scores of the winner and finalists were very close.
We’ll start with Eric.
Eric Grilly: Thanks, Beth. You may have just noticed Beth calling the federation by a new name: The Digital Media Federation.
As you may recall, a couple of months ago the New Media Board sent an email to its members asking for comments on changing the Federation name from the New Media Federation to the Digital Media Federation. The Board felt this change was needed so that the Federation name more accurately reflected the activities of its members, and since, well -- frankly, not a lot of companies use the term “New” Media any longer. I’m happy to say that the majority of the Federation agreed with the Board on this! Late last week, the executive committees of all the Federations approved this name change, so we will now be known as the Digital Media Federation.
Now, on to the reason why we are here, The Digital Edge Awards.
Our first award tonight is the Best Overall News Site. These newspaper Web sites have gone above and beyond. The finalists and winners all made huge multimedia and database efforts this year. Many of them invited users to submit content and otherwise participate in the Web site. All of the finalists are well-designed and put their audience first.
The Best Overall News Site finalists in the 75,000 and less circulation category are:
Bakersfield.com, The Bakersfield Californian
LJWorld.com, The World Co. and
NaplesNews.com, Naples Daily News
And the winner is: NaplesNews.com, Naples Daily News.
The finalists in the 75,000 to 250,000 circulation category are:
KnoxNews.com, The Knoxville News Sentinel
Pilot Online, Interactive Media and
Roanoke.com, The Roanoke Times.
The scores here were close, but the winner is: Roanoke.com.
In the 250,000 and more circulation category, the finalists are:
Boston.com, The Boston Globe
StarTribune.com, The Minnesota Star Tribune and
washingtonpost.com
The winner is: WashingtonPost.com
Kirk Read: Thanks, Eric.
Our next category is Most Innovative Multimedia Storytelling, another category with numerous strong entries. The finalists from newspapers with a circulation of 75,000 or less are:
A Deputy’s Death, The Lakeland, Fla. Ledger
Imitation Sergeant Major, The McAllen Monitor
Studio55 Vodcast, Naples Daily News
And the winner is: Studio 55 Vodcast, Naples Daily News
The Studio 55 Vodcast is a local newscast and entertainment video program on NaplesNews.com and on Comcast cable. Viewers can also download video to their iPod or PSP, and it’s available in several online video formats. The show includes interviews with local newsmakers, traffic, sports and more. For the Vodcast, the Daily News built its own studio in the newsroom for around $500,000.
The scores for Most Innovative Multimedia Storytelling were close in the 75,000 – 250,000 circulation category. The finalists are:
John Muir Trail Blog, The Fresno Bee
Sealing Our Border – Why It Won’t Work, The Arizona Daily Star and
Statesman.com, The Austin American Statesman
And the winner is: John Muir Trail Blog, The Fresno Bee.
Four reporter/photographer teams hiked 211 miles with cameras and satellite phones for the multimedia feature. They updated the blog daily, produced videos and photo galleries, and readers joined the hikers online through comments.
In the 250,000 and more circulation category, the finalists for Most Innovative Multimedia Storytelling are:
ChicagoTribune.com, Tribune Interactive
TBO.com Hurricane Guide and
Being a Black Man, Washingtonpost.com
And the winner is: ChicagoTribune.com, Tribune Interactive.
ChicagoTribune.com’s entry in this category included “A Tank of Gas, A World of Trouble,” which brought users on an oil safari with video and other multimedia elements. Twelve staff members worked on the project over several months. Their entry also included a series on a death penalty case in Texas that has resulted in calls for a death penalty moratorium there.
Eric Grilly: Thanks, Kirk.
The entries in the MostInnovative Visitor Participation category were quite impressive. Many Web sites have moved beyond forums and now ask users for photos, opinions, statistics, video and more. The finalists in this category were creative, unconventional and exceptional.
The finalists in the 75,000 or less circulation category are:
Bakotopia.com, The Bakersfield Californian
Paradise, At What Cost? Naples Daily News and
SavannahNow.com, the Savannah Morning News
And the winner is: SavannahNow.com.
The people at SavannahNow.com mean it when they say “It’s not about us… it’s about you!” The Web site features social networking, blogs, user profile pages and a ton of other user-generated content.
We had no finalists in the 75,000 to 250,000 category, so we’ll move on to the 250,000 and more circulation category.
The finalists are:
Absence of Place, The Miami Herald
ChicagoSports.com, Tribune Interactive
Gasparilla the Movie, TBO.com
And the winner is: Gasparilla the Movie, TBO.com
TBO.com took user-generated content to new level, accepting video and photos from users, and turning it into a movie about the annual Gasparilla festival in Tampa. TBO used cards and volunteers for publicity, and spent very little on this adaptable project. The movie was one of the most trafficked parts of TBO.com for several months after the event.
Donna Stokley: Next up is theBest Design and SiteArchitecture category. Again this year, the category had several entries showing a wide range of design. For papers with circulation of 75,000 or less, the finalists are:
Gator Sports Fan Site, The Gainesville Sun
Lawrence.com, World Online and
SavannahNow.com, The Savannah Morning News
And the winner is: Lawrence.com
Lawrence.com uses “mounds of data” as they put it to help site visitors find exactly what they’re looking for. With a huge amount of cross-linking, constant updates and improvements and new and innovative ways to search, the Web site is an architectural leader.
The finalists in the 75,000 – 250,000 circulation category are:
DaytonDailyNews.com
Statesman.com, The Austin American Statesman and
TCPalm.com. Scripps Treasure Coast Newspapers.
The winner is: Statesman.com, The Austin American Statesman
The Austin American Statesman launched a significant redesign in early 2006. Their goals included creating intuitive navigation, integrate the company’s different Web sites, and making user-generated content more prominent. They also made the homepage sleeker, focusing on shorter load times and less scrolling.
The finalists in the 250,000 and more circulation category are:
AZCentral.com, The Arizona Republic
StarTribune.com, The Minnesota Star Tribune and
washingtonpost.com.
And the winner is: StarTribune.com
The clean design of the Star Tribune’s Web site has made the user experience more positive. They have put the online focus on visual storytelling, multimedia and local content.
Kirk Read: Thanks, Donna.
Next up is Best Classified Innovation. Online classifieds have improved by leaps and bounds in the past several years, and this year the entries were no exception. Several of the finalists found news ways to build communities around a product category.
In the under 75,000 circulation category, the finalists are:
AutoFinder, the Lima News
Gainesville Sun Online Classifieds and
JobFetch.com, The Frederick News Post
And the winner is: Gainesville Sun Online Classfieds.
With the Gainesville Sun’s Online Classifieds, users can find ads in a logical way, purchase and upgrade ads, and see both display and classified advertisements together to maximize comparison shopping for customers.
In the 75,000 to 250,000 circulation category, the finalists are:
Broadband Employment Site, Knoxville News Sentinel
Hartford Courant Pets and
There’s One Among Us Contest, Dayton Daily News
The winner is: Hartford Courant Pets.
The Hartford Courant found innovative ways to pair user-submitted content with ads, contests and more. The Courant successfully created a new online pets community that attracted readers and advertisers alike with exclusive content and interactivity, including a Submit Your Pet’s Photo” contest.
In the 250,000 and up circulation category, the finalists are:
DallasNews.com Shopping Portal
Job Mate, The Minnesota Star Tribune, and
Miami Herald.com Pets Classifieds.
The winner is: MiamiHerald.com Pets Classifieds.
MiamiHerald.com’s goal was to surpass Craigslist in one category without spending more than $1,000 – and they did it! Using a combination of user-generated content and in-house resources, giving away free ads and partnering with the Humane Society, MiamiHerald.com bested Craigslist in the Pets category.
Donna Stokley: Thanks, Kirk.
There were some very strong contenders in the category of Best Use of Interactive Media.
In the 75,000 or less circulation category, the finalists are:
BlufftonToday.com, Morris Digital Works
KUSports.com Game Day Coverage, World Online and
Pigskin Review, Amarillo.com and the Amarillo Globe-News
The winner is: Pigskin Review.
Pigskin Review is a supersite for high school football, covering 70 schools in the region. The site inclues stats, photo galleries, standings, articles and plenty of content contribution from “superfans.”
In the 75,000 to 25,000 circulation category, the finalists for Best Use of Interactive Media are:
Random This, The Knoxville News Sentinel
Hampton Roads.TV, Interactive Media and
DaytonDailyNews.com Health Care Today Classroom, Cox Ohio Publishing
The winner is: Random This, The Knoxville News Sentinel.
Random This is a weekly video feature produced with low-tech equipment and great storytelling skills. The producers call it “MacGyver Journalism” and it’s successful at engaging Web site visitors.
Finally, in the 250,000 and up circulation category, the finalists for Best Use of Interactive Media are…
AZCentral Mobile, The Arizona Republic
Boston.com’s Mapping the Money and
TBO.com Crime Tracker
Another close score – the winner is: AZCentral Mobile.
In addition to news and weather, AZCentral Mobile has entertainment, classifieds, photo galleries. The service proves that slideshows and database-driven information isn’t out of the reach of mobile users.
Eric Grilly: We received a high number of quality entries in the category of Best Advertising Program from all circulation categories.
The finalists in the 75,000 or less circulation category are:
I Beat Beilue, Amarillo Globe News
My Home Improvement, Bradenton Herald and
Prime Home Builders Expandable Ad, Naples Daily News
And the winner is: Naples Daily News, Prime Home Builders Ad
Naples is a coastal community in a real estate boom. Using information from Onmiture’s Click Map, the NaplesNews.com had Prime Home Builders sponsor the latest news section of the homepage with an ad that changes and grows as more breaking news is added to the site.
In the 75,000 to 250,000 circulation category, the finalists are:
Gottschalks Back2School, The Fresno Bee
PalmBeachPost.com’s Mobile Ad Services Program and
Packer Insider Subscription Program, The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
And the winner is:PalmBeachPost.com.
Their mobile ad services program is designed to help customers save time and help advertisers be relevant to their potential customers. PalmBeachPost.com offers all of its classifieds ads through mobile devices on several wireless carrier networks using numeric codes and text messaging. Users can easily receive photos and more information on their mobile device, and thousands of PalmBeachPost readers use the service every month.
In the 250,000 or more circulation category, the finalists are:
Boston.com’s Cingular Homepage Domination
The Tampa Bay Hooters Swimsuit Pageant and Beach Party, The St. Petersburg Times,
And The Black Dahlia, L.A. Times.
And the winner is:
The Tampa Bay Hooters Swimsuit Pageant and Beach party, the St. Petersburg Times.
The Tampa Bay Hooters Restaurant and the St. Petersburg Times teamed up to allow readers to vote on which two Tampa Bay Hooters waitresses would go to the Hooters International Swimsuit Pageant in Las Vegas. The program included online voting, photos and biographies of the contestants and extensive promotion for the competition and party. Viral marketing played a key role.
Kirk Read: Hyperlocal content on newspaper Web sites is becoming more important as a means to connect with readers on things that impact their everyday lives. We’re pleased to announce these finalists for Best Local Guide or Entertainment Site.
In the 75,000 or less circulation category, the finalists are:
CoastalBeat.com, Naples Daily News
Currents Online, Wilmington Star News and
Lawrence.com, World Online
And the winner is: Lawrence.com, World Online.
Lawrence.com is the World Company’s alternative publication in Lawrence, Kan., and serves as more than a guide to the lifestyle, culture and arts and entertainment scenes in town. The site has an impressive and user-friendly search engine, a magazine-style look and feel and plenty of attitude.
In the 75,000 – 250,000 circulation category, the finalists are:
CTNow.com, The Hartford Courant
DiscoverRichmond.com, Media General Interactive and
Spokane7.com, Spokesman Review
The winner is: Spokane7.com, Spokesman Review
Spokane7.com has a polished, easy-to-use navigation and a huge amount of Web-original content. The site features many podcasts, blogs and other multimedia elements and includes a strong database and an effective and informative mobile edition.
In the 250,000 and more circulation category, the finalists for Best Local Guide or Entertainment Site are:
AZCentral.com, The Arizona Republic
Vita.MN, The Minnesota Star Tribune and
Washingtonpost.com City Guide
The winner is: Vita.MN, The Star Tribune
Vita.mn was a new Web site in 2006. It combines social networking and Web site visitor recommendations with a deep arts and entertainment database and more.
Eric Grilly: The Best Local Shopping & Directory Strategy category was a new category last year. Newspapers’ Web sites have seen the impact of local search and understand the importance of connecting and readers and local businesses using technology. This was clear from the quality of the entries in the category.
In the 75,000 or less circulation group, the finalists are:
The Restaurant Guide, Naples Daily News and
The Stop N Shop Ads and Classifieds Online Database, Juneau Empire
The winner is: Naples Daily News
As a tourist area on the Florida coast, Naples has a large and healthy restaurant scene. The NaplesNews.com Web site features an extensive database with descriptions and several searchable features from cuisine to hours to boat parking. Visitors can leave comments, rate restaurants and more, and the restaurant section is consistently one of the highest trafficked areas of the Web site.
In the 75,000 – 250,000 circulation category, the finalists for Best Local Shopping & Directory strategy are:
Milwaukee Market Place, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Shopping Channel, Palm Beach Post and
TriState Home Show, Evansville Courier Co.
The winner is: TriState Home Show, Evansville Courier Co.
For several years, the Evansville Courier & Press has hosted a successful annual home show event. In early 2006, they added an online version, a resource for Web site visitors looking for home improvement information. It features local search, downloadable information and how-to guides, online video commercials and articles from HGTV.com and DIYNetwork.com. The site has grown significantly in the past year and the Courier Co. is adding to it all the time.
In the 250,000 and up circulation category, the judges bypassed the finalists stage, promoting one great entry to winner status. So the winner in that category is…
Shop Minnesota, The Minnesota Star Tribune
Shop Minnesota integrates newspaper ads, coupons, enhanced classified listings and more with a powerful search allowing visitors to easily navigate through more than 500,000 items in addition to ads, coupons, yellow page listings and more. The Pets Marketplace section has shown that it’s possible to bring together like-minded people and e-commerce. Shop Minnesota is powered by Planet Discover.
Beth Lawton: We have one more award tonight, and it’s one at least a couple people in the room have been waiting for… but first, we’d like to call all of our Digital Edge Award winners up on stage so we can give them a well-deserved round of applause for their hard work and creativity.
And now, for the Online Innovator Award.
The Online Innovator Award recognizes people who push for growth in online publishing, willingly share their lessons learned and mentor others in the field. Past winners include Lisa DeSisto, Rusty Coats, Michaeal Romaner, Rob Curley and others – some past winners are here tonight.
Members of the Digital Media Federation nominate people for this award. The Board narrows down the list of finalists, and the full Federation membership votes for a winner.
This year’s finalists are Steve Yelvington, Media Strategist, Morris Digital Works, and Dave Morgan, founder of Tacoda, Inc.
Both have done outstanding work in the field, and I’d like to introduce Howard Finberg, Director of Interactive Learning at The Poynter Institute and he founded and was managing director of Finberg-Gentry, the Digital Futurist Consultancy.
Howard Finberg: Thank you very much for asking me to announce this very important industry award.
The Online Innovator Award recognizes a leader whose commitment to digital media directly influences the direction of his or her company and inspires positive change throughout the industry.
In many ways, it’s too bad that NAA changed the name of this award to Innovator from Pioneer.
It’s too bad because the winner is as much a pioneer as an innovator.
If you type into a search engine – what did we do before Yahoo and Google? – and ask for definition of a pioneer, here’s what you get back:
Pioneer: 1. a person who is among those who first enter or settle a region, thus opening it for occupation and development by others. 2. one who is first or among the earliest in any field of inquiry, enterprise, or progress: pioneers in cancer research.
OK, now, what about innovator?
Innovator: someone who helps to open up a new line of research or technology or art. [syn: pioneer]
Both definitions are very accurate when it comes to describing the winner of the 2007 NAA get official name of the award.
I am delighted and personally pleased to announce that Steve Yelvington is this year’s winner.
Let me tell you a little about why this award is so appropriate.
Come with me now to the “old days” of dial-up modems and CompuServe forums and discussion boards on such places such as The Source.
That’s where I first ‘met’ Steve. He was generally known by his unique e-mail address: stevey @ by the lake or some such unique e-mail address. He had his own domain before anyone I knew.
And Steve wrote – nagged, begged, prodded, cajoled his colleagues to look beyond today; to look toward the future.
What do I mean? Listen to what Steve wrote in a Sat. March 2, 1996 e-mail. Remember, this is 11 years ago:
He starts with this: (Warning: This is a long one.)
The future of publishing, both print and electronic, is one in which all content will be originally recorded in a structured fashion in powerful, flexible, standard-platform systems. Current and archive data, library/reference info, unpublished material, and metadata such as publication rights and/or royalties, all should be contained in an interoperable/coherent environment that can support multiple print and digital publication formats as necessary. The more forward-thinking institutions are moving quickly in that direction.
And it not just technology where Steve has sparked some of the industry’s most provocative conversations. He also cares about the foundation of our democracy and looks beyond the obvious.
Here’s what Steve wrote earlier this year about the unique challenges ahead for newspapers:
Newspapers -- online and off -- continue to be built around an assumption that there is a great unmet demand for news.
The reality is that people are drowning in news; it follows them around on radios and screens in cars, bars, stores, airports, even into elevators.
Increasingly, people say they don't seek news because they don't need to seek news -- if it's important, the news will come to them.
Once again, Steve is challenging us to be innovative. To think beyond the obvious.
But he isn’t a naysayer; I believe he is, at heart, an optimist. He believes in newspapers:
My belief is that newspapers have an opportunity and should have a mission to rebuild the civic fabric from the bottom up. The Internet is a neutral tool that can be used to improve or destroy local civic life, and it's up to us to choose how to use it.
These are just three examples of how Steve Yelvington has challenged his colleagues to think beyond the obvious. He challenges our assumptions. He has challenges the “just good enough” policies and processes that hold back innovation.
He a worthy recipient of this award and I’m pleased to present it to him as his as a colleague and a friend.
Beth Lawton: I want to mention a few things before we all take off to celebrate.
We’ll have an ACME and Digital Edge Awards winners showcase up in the hallway behind us tomorrow morning. I’d encourage you to look at the posters, read more about the winners. We will have the winners list up later tonight at the Digital Edge blog, and we’ll be launching an ACME and Edgie Award winners database on NAA.org this week, so be sure to check those out.
There are several interesting panels and discussions over the next several days here in Las Vegas. Thanks again to everyone who entered and congratulations to tonight’s winners!