Athens Banner-Herald earns journalism awards from Georgia Press Association

The Athens Banner-Herald garnered three first place awards and third place in the General Excellence category at the Georgia Press Association’s 137th annual convention held Friday at Jekyll Island.

Awards were presented in numerous sports, news writing and photography categories in the 2024 Better Newspaper Contest for papers of various sizes. There were 78 daily and weekly newspapers in the state with submissions.

The Banner-Herald competes in daily publications with a print circulation of less than 8,000.

First place in Division B went to the Valdosta Daily Times, followed by the Rome News-Tribute, while the Banner-Herald received a tie for third with the Courier Herald in Dublin.

“I’m very proud of the Athens Banner-Herald staff, not only for the well-deserved awards they accumulate each year, but also for the hard work and dedication they exhibit every day,” said Donnie Fetter, managing editor for the Banner-Herald. “In my 30 years in journalism, I have never worked with a staff who cares more deeply about their community and the readers they serve.”

Other awards won by the Banner-Herald an its staff include:

• 2nd place, News Photo, Joshua L. Jones
• 3rd place, News Photo, Joshua L. Jones
• 2nd place, Sports Photo, Joshua L. Jones
• 3rd place, Sports Feature Photo, Joshua L. Jones
• 2nd place, Feature Photo, Joshua L. Jones
• 2nd place, Photo Essay, Joshua L. Jones
• 2nd place, Best Photo Gallery, Joshua L. Jones
• 1st place, Feature Writing, Wayne Ford
• 2nd place, Feature Writing, Andrew Shearer
• 2nd place, Enterprise Story, Wayne Ford
• 1st place, Sports Coverage, Marc Weiszer
• 1st place, Sports Feature Story, Marc Weiszer
• 3rd place, Business Writing, Andrew Shearer
• 3rd, General Excellence, Staff