Oklahoma
Christian Chronicle journalist again wins RNA Award for Religion Reporting Excellence
NEW YORK — For the fifth time, the Religion News…
Christian Chronicle wins nine awards in Oklahoma Society of Professional Journalists contest
Oklahoma City-based international newspaper for Churches of Christ honored for outstanding reporting and writing.
LAWTON, Okla. — News coverage of the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot and a special report on a Central American hospital’s fight against COVID-19 earned The Christian Chronicle top honors in an annual journalism contest.
In all, the Oklahoma City-based international newspaper for Churches of Christ won 11 awards — including first place in four categories — in the competition sponsored by the Oklahoma Society of Professional Journalists.
The Chronicle competes in Division A against the state’s large newspapers and wire services. Winners were announced at an awards banquet Oct. 15 at the Apache Casino Hotel in Lawton.
The honored stories:
Election reporting
First place: “Flags, faith and fury” plus related coverage by Bobby Ross Jr., Hamil R. Harris and Cheryl Mann Bacon.
Supporters of President Donald Trump mob the Capitol Rotunda after breaching security during the Jan. 6 riot.
Science, health, tech and environmental reporting
First place: “How faith plays a role in Honduras’ COVID-19 fight” plus a related story and column by Audrey Jackson and Erik Tryggestad.
Carlos Rivera prays with patients in the COVID-19 ward of Hospital Regional San Francisco in Juticalpa, Honduras.
Spot news reporting
First place: “Christians offer physical, spiritual help after historic flooding” plus a related story by Bobby Ross Jr.
Volunteers with the Churches of Christ Disaster Response Team help with flood relief in Waverly, Tenn.
Sports features
First place: “All in the family: baseball and Jesus” by Bobby Ross Jr.
The McCarthy family — Miller, Andre, Katie Beth, Patrick and Keenan — at Faulkner’s field.
Best reporter
Second place: Bobby Ross Jr. for a portfolio of stories, including:
• “Tulsa Race Massacre prayer room highlights churches’ 1921 sins, seeks healing.”
• “In Canada, a reckoning after remains of 215 Indigenous children are found.”
• “In city where George Floyd died, minister emerges as key champion for justice.”
• “Picket signs, honking horns and sidewalk sermons: Inside an anti-abortion ministry.”
• “Will Candice McQueen really be the first female president of a Church of Christ university?”
Government reporting
Second place: “Could the U.S. Supreme Court soon overturn Roe v. Wade?” with related story by Kenneth Pybus and Bobby Ross Jr.
Conner Westerby, right, pickets a Michigan clinic, joined by fellow Christians Laura Sawyer and Shannon Filipiak.
Enterprise and investigative reporting
Third place: “After struggling for years, Ohio Valley University forced to close” by Cheryl Mann Bacon.
2019 Ohio Valley University graduates wear their caps and gowns.
Feature writing
Third place: “Racial barriers broken as Christians mourn three family members killed in Alabama tornado” by Cheryl Mann Bacon.
A drone photo shows the area where the tornado hit the Harris family’s home.
Personal column
Third place: “A Sunday morning miracle: Cinderella ACU earns its glass slipper just after midnight” by Cheryl Mann Bacon.
The scoreboard after 14-seed Abilene Christian University beat the 3-seed Texas Longhorns, 53-52.
