LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. – The Tuscaloosa News has been honored with the highest award by the Associated Press Sports Editors for the fourth time in the last five years, garnering Grand Slam status for top-10 finishes in the daily sections, special sections, Sunday sections and website categories in its division for work done in 2016.
Only 12 newspapers across all circulation divisions won Grand Slam awards. The Tuscaloosa News has earned either Grand Slam or Triple Crown recognition for excellence in every year since 2009.
Additionally, The Tuscaloosa News, with its companion Tidesports.com and TuscPreps.com websites, is among five news organizations that have earned top 10 honors in the APSE contest for eight straight years, since the website contest’s inception.
Overall, The Tuscaloosa News and its Tidesports.com website earned 10 total awards, with five awards for writing and one for video. Only The Washington Post, The New York Times and the Seattle Times won more total awards.
The Tuscaloosa News won two top 10 awards for breaking news: one by Joey Chandler for her report on a coach at Berry High School being suspended after a commemorative football was burned by players, and one by Aaron Suttles and Andrew Bone for their report on former University of Alabama assistant football coach Bo Davis stepping down in the midst of an investigation into possible NCAA recruiting violations.
Bone, Suttles and Chandler also received a top 10 award in the projects division for the Alabama’s Most Wanted package ranking the state’s top 50 football prospects.
Cecil Hurt placed in the top 10 for column writing. Tommy Deas was honored with a top-10 award for explanatory writing for his story on Lane Kiffin and the jet sweep.
Tuscaloosa News intern and University of Alabama student Tyler Waldrep received a top-five honor in long video for his video on the UA men’s tennis team training with the school’s ROTC program.
Final rankings in the writing and video categories will be announced in March.
