The Billings Gazette and the Big Timber Pioneer took top honors at the 132nd Annual Convention of the Montana Newspaper Association held June 16 & 17 in Lewistown, Montana.
Winner of the Sam Gilluly Award for Best Daily Newspaper, the Gazette was also awarded the General Excellence Award for the largest dailies in the state.
The Pioneer swept multiple categories on its way to the Thomas Dimsdale Award for Best Weekly Newspaper in Montana and the General Excellence Award for the smallest circulation papers.
Other newspapers recognized for General Excellence in their circulation category during the Better Newspaper Contest were the Choteau Acantha, the Lewistown News-Argus and the Flathead Beacon. Burley & Rozlynn Bowler, owners and publishers, Daniels County Leader were honored with the 2017 Master Editor/Publisher Award for their significant contributions to the Montana newspaper industry and the Montana Newspaper Association.
Suzanne ‘Sue’ Hart, 1936-2014, was inducted into the Montana Newspaper Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame was established by the Montana Newspaper Association and the University of Montana School of Journalism, and honors Montana journalists who have made outstanding contributions to the profession, the arts, and their community. The Boulder Monitor did not participate in this year’s convention or contest. A full list of all of the awards can be found online at mtnewspapers.com/awards2017/presentation. Php.
