The Times-Standard-Herald has won three National Newspaper Association awards, including first place for Freedom of Information reporting in a category the contest judges called extremely competitive. The Times-Standard-Herald was the only Alabama newspaper to win an award in this year’s national editorial contest, taking all three of the state’s honors in the competition.
The awards recognize work published in 2025 and were announced July 7. The contest draws entries from newspapers across the country.
The newspaper took first place in the Freedom of Information category for “Marion’s Water Crisis: Access Denied,” part of its continuing coverage of the city’s handling of public records requests. The category was open to daily and non-daily newspapers of all sizes.
Writing about the entry, one contest judge said the newspaper followed irregularities leading up to a water outage and, with persistence and determination, stood up against efforts to keep the public out of the public’s business. The judge called the work a testament to the importance of the local watchdog at a community newspaper.
“The staff stood up against efforts to keep the public out of the public’s business,” said one judge in the Freedom of Information category.
The Times-Standard-Herald placed third in Best Reporting on Local Government for “Marion’s Water Crisis and City Hall,” in the division for non-daily newspapers with circulation under 2,000. A judge in that category wrote, “Where did the money go? Keep following this one,” and said the entry showed a two-person newsroom could chase down facts in a multitude of ways.
The newspaper also placed fourth in the Community Service Award category, open to all newspapers, for “Marion Water System Financial Accountability.” A judge wrote that persistent reporting uncovered a larger problem of city funding concerns and called the work the type of reporting communities rely on.
All three entries were reported and written by Editor and Publisher John Allan Clark. The stories are part of the newspaper’s ongoing investigation into the City of Marion’s water and sewer finances, including unaccounted utility payments, the handling of federal funds, and the city’s responses to open records requests.
“This work came out of a fight over records the public had every right to see,” Clark said. “Winning first in the country for Freedom of Information tells us the fight was worth having.”
The national recognition comes a week after Watchman Media Group papers were honored in the Alabama Press Association’s annual contest. In the state contest, the Times-Standard-Herald swept the Public Service category, winning first, second and third place in Division D, took first place for Freedom of Information and third place for feature writing, and The Greensboro Watchman placed second for Best Business Story for “Project Whisker.”
The awards will be presented at the National Newspaper Association’s annual convention in Detroit in September.
