IndieWire Wins 2 LA Press Club Awards, Including TV Critic of the Year Ben Travers

Samantha Bergeson
·2 min read

The annual Los Angeles Press Club Awards honored multiple IndieWire staffers Sunday night.

Among the honorees, IndieWire Deputy TV Editor and chief TV critic Ben Travers was recognized as TV Critic of the Year at the ceremony, which took place June 25 at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles.

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The official comment for Travers’ honor reads, “The reporter’s writing style includes his personal tele-visual hang-ups, much to the benefit of the reviews!”

Travers’ reviews for the series finale of “Atlanta,” the Season 1 “Yellowjackets” finale, and “Tuca & Bertie” were among the selected pieces recognized by the LA Press Club.

Also taking first place in the Audio Journalism category for Best Entertainment Reporting were Sarah Shachat, Chris O’Falt, and Zach Valenti with podcast episode “Filmmaker Toolkit: Station Eleven Deep Dive Podcast.” Said the LA Press Club: “This ‘deep dive’ skillfully uses multiple interviews and clips to learn the backstory of a single TV episode.”

Overall, IndieWire was additionally ranked in second place for best website. Staffers Christian Blauvelt and Jude Dry’s piece “Anne Heche Was a Hollywood Radical — and Deserved More Credit for It” found third place for the Obituary and In Appreciation category. Shachat, O’Falt, and Valenti’s “The Sound of ‘The Matrix'” also received third place for Use of Sound coverage.

The 2023 LA Press Club Awards were hosted by John Leguizamo and Spectrum News 1 anchor Gisele Fernandez, who received the President’s Award for Impact on Media. Fernandez’s award was presented by “Basic Instinct” icon Sharon Stone.

The Los Angeles Press Club is among the oldest journalist organizations in the country, founded in 1913. The club established the NAEJ Awards in 2008 to “recognize and honor quality journalism in the fastest-growing segment of the modern media revolution,” per the website. “It remains the sole acknowledgment of its kind in the nation and has become a much-anticipated celebration for those covering the entertainment industry and its artists.”

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