The Los Angeles Times Scores 15 Honors from the Society for Features Journalism
The Los Angeles Times has been honored with 15 awards from the Society for Features Journalism Excellence-in-Features Awards competition (Division 3), including a first place honor in the Finest in Features Sweepstakes, which recognizes the publications that garner the most honors in the contest’s other 20 categories.
The Times’ 14 honors in the individual categories included first place awards for best section and best feature series or project.
In recognizing The Times’ win in the best section category, which includes best regularly occurring printed features sections that focus on arts & entertainment, lifestyles or other features coverage, the competition’s judges lauded the “attention-grabbing illustrations, classy color palettes, fine photography and pristine design.
“The feature[s] department treats readers to smart writing, insightful commentary and timely glimpses into the lives of everyday Angelenos,” the judges noted, pointing out a package highlighting 42 Black-owned businesses, “a compelling essay about being Black in L.A. and a well-crafted profile of a Black father and son who own a plant nursery.”
The judges also gave high praise to The Chicano Moratorium: 50 Years Later project, which won first place for best feature series or project. “This is an exceptionally well-done and eye-opening series about the 1970 protest against the Vietnam War, and the presentation is gorgeous,” the judges noted. “The writing, especially the ‘Loss of Innocence’ story by Daniel Hernandez, is evocative and clear.”
Alice Short, acting Food Editor, said the Food team is “especially pleased” about the kudos it received for its annual restaurant guide, which earned a second place award for best special section. “When you read the compelling write-ups from our critics, you might very well vow to dine at each and every one of the restaurants that are included,” said Short, who noted that the awards competition “is a great occasion to take stock of all the people who work so tirelessly and aren’t necessarily nominated for awards.”
Below is a list of The Times’ honorees by category.
Finest in Features Sweepstakes
First place: Los Angeles Times
Best Section
First place: Los Angeles Times
General Feature
Second place: Maria La Ganga, A Family Wonders If They Should Hope a Loved One With COVID-19 Lives or Help Him Die
Honorable mention: Molly Hennessy-Fiske, ‘So Many Bodies … I Lost Count’: The Grim Business Moving Latino Coronavirus Victims as Death Toll Spikes
Arts & Entertainment Feature
Second place: Ashley Lee, 40 Black Playwrights on the Theater Industry’s Insidious Racism
Food Feature
Second place: Daniel Miller, The Hottest Free Agent in L.A. is a 69-Year-Old Waitress From Now-Closed Nate ’n Al’s
Food Criticism
Third place: Lucas Kwan Peterson, When It Comes to Restaurants, Whose Dish Is It Anyway?
Features Series or Project
First place: Staff, Los Angeles Times, The Chicano Moratorium: 50 Years Later
Feature Specialty Writing Portfolio
Third place: Brittny Mejia
General Commentary Portfolio
Second place: Gustavo Arellano
Sports Feature
Second place: David Wharton, At Age 60 and Paralyzed, She Tried To Row Across The Pacific
Video Storytelling
Honorable mention: Claire Collins, Makeda Easter and Erik Himmelsbach-Weinstein, How Black Culture Made Roller Skating Popular
Best Special Section
Second place (tie): Bill Addison, Patricia Escárcega and Martina Ibañez-Baldor, 101 Restaurants, Dishes, People and Ideas 2020
Third place: Alice Short and Sammy Jo Hester, Women in Sports: Game Changers
Best Podcast
Honorable mention: Frank Shyong and Jen Yamato, Asian Enough
The full list of award winners can be found at featuresjournalism.org.
