Star-Telegram wins 18 awards from Texas APME, including 5 first place honors

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram won 18 awards from the Texas Associated Press Managing Editors’ annual contest, including five first-place honors.

The Star-Telegram competes in the largest classification. The awards were announced Tuesday.

Nichole Manna, Yffy Yossifor and Steve Wilson were awarded the Star Online Package of the Year for their work on a series that explored the issues in the 76104 ZIP code, which has the lowest life expectancy in Texas. The report also received second-place honors in Community Service.

Mark Dent was awarded the Celeste Williams Star Sportswriter of the Year. His work included stories about high school teams’ struggles to keep COVID-19 out of sports and the TV blackouts of Dallas Cowboys games from the 1960s through 1990. He also received third-place honors in the category of Star Reporter of the Year and honorable mention recognition for feature story and sports feature.

Mac Engel was awarded first place in Sports Column Writing. His columns explored Patrick Mahomes’ hometown and featured the last-place finishes of the Cowtown Marathon. Engel also placed second in General Column Writing for non-sports pieces about the pandemic.

Yossifor was awarded first place in Video Shorter than Two Minutes for her feature on a Kennedale High School junior who runs track and cross county despite her blindness. Amanda McCoy won first place in Video Longer than Two Minutes for her work on how North Texans navigate the work environment in a post-COVID world.

Manna received second place in Community Service for her series on the 76104 ZIP code.

McCoy received second place in Video Shorter than Two Minutes for her coverage of a protest on the 7th Street bridge that ended when police dispersed the crowd with tear gas.

Yossifor’s video on 76104 received second-place honors for Video Longer than Two Minutes. Her photo of Dak Prescott after his ankle injury earned an honorable mention.

Drew Davison’s feature on a TCU basketball player who was a victim of human trafficking as a teenager received second place in Sports Feature.

Gordon Dickson received third place for Business Reporting for his story about high home prices amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Opinion editor Ryan J. Rusak received third place in Star Opinion Writer of the Year category. His work included a front-page editorial urging Fort Worth residents to wear masks.

Texas Rangers beat writer Jeff Wilson received third place for Celeste Williams Star Sportswriter of the Year. The award is named after the former longtime Star-Telegram sports editor who died in 2017.

Brian Gosset picked up an honorable mention for his sports feature about a boy with cancer who fulfilled his dream of playing for the Brewer basketball team.