Terry Christensen

Jane Curtis

Lori Berglund

David Borer

Anne Blankenship

Earlier that evening, Terry Christensen, the Daily Freeman-Journal’s publisher, was honored as Master Publisher-Editor. He is also the publisher of The Messenger, in Fort Dodge, and the Times-Republican, in Marshalltown.

Kelby Wingert, a reporter for The Messenger whose work has appeared frequently in the Daily Freeman-Journal, was named a recipient of the Jay P. Wagner Prize for Young Journalists.

The DFJ won 16 first-place awards in the contest judged by the North Carolina Press Association. There were roughly 2,500 entries. The DFJ is in the Daily I class of newspapers with circulation numbers of 5,000 or less.

The first-place awards honor the work of Jane Curtis, Anne Blankenship, Troy Banning, Helen Coleman, Nick Manwarren, Lori Berglund, and David Borer.

Here is a list of the first-place awards:

General Excellence

Best Editorial Page

Best Sports Section

Best Feature Page(s)

First in Coverage of Agriculture

Best Special Section — Editorial

First in Total Newspaper Design

First in Community Leadership

Best Headline Writing

Best Sports Story — Troy Banning

Best Sports Feature Story — Troy Banning

Excellence in Editorial Writing — Jane Curtis

Best Sports Columnist — Troy Banning

Best Sports Photo — Troy Banning

Best Sports Feature Photo — David Borer

Christensen has been the publisher of the newspapers in Fort Dodge and Webster City since October 2017. He recently assumed leadership of the Marshalltown paper. He had previously served as general manager of The Daily Freeman-Journal since 2010.

“Terry Christensen is not one to be fearful of shaking up the norm to bring fresh perspective, a more relevant and locally based news product,” the INA said in explaining why he was honored. “Once an outsider to the industry if you will, he brought a wave of new ideas, tactics, and philosophies for his newspapers.”

The DFJ placed second in the following four award categories:

Best Front Page, Coverage of Government and Politics, Coverage of Business, and Master Columnist — Jane Curtis.

The DFJ’s third-place prizes were in the following three categories:

Coverage of Education, Coverage of Court and Crime, and Best Personality Feature Story — Lori Berglund.

The Iowa Newspaper Association is a group of about 300 daily and weekly papers.