Skagway and Haines brought home a handful of awards from the yearly state media gathering. Not all the winners were professional journalists. Melinda Munson from KHNS attended the conference and brings us this report.

 

 

Skagway resident Wendy Anderson was surprised to hear that her name was announced at last week’s Alaska Press Club Conference. The Anchorage conference brings together journalists from across the state to educate, network and honor their efforts.

Anderson is not a journalist, but her photo, published in The Skagway News, placed third for best feature photo.

In the photo, a beam of sunlight squarely hits an individual in an inflatable unicorn costume. It’s somber and playful at the same time. The picture was taken in June of 2023, during Pride celebration. That spring, Haines experienced controversy when the Southeast Alaska State Fair scheduled Juneau Drag.

Anderson says the day before Skagway Pride was rainy and organizers were worried about the event. She says everything changed when the sun came out and centered on the unicorn.

“It just, you know, brought the joy of that particular event’s spirit, and it just captured it in one photo,” Anderson says. “And so, for professional photographers and journalists to recognize that – and also in a conservative state when it’s not safe for a lot of people to be open about their sexuality. Having state recognition of that moment, and that event, has greater meaning than just reporting a news story.”

Less of a surprise was Andrew Cremata’s first place award for Best Sports or Outdoors Column. Cremata has been writing Fish This! for The Skagway News for around 25 years.

A frequent winner, Cremata says he appreciates the recognition from his peers. His “silly fishing stories” can take hours to write and each season has an overarching theme. While his column is about fishing, even non-fishing folk can appreciate his prose.

“I think anybody who spends time in the outdoors, whether it’s fishing or hiking, camping, or whatever it might be – they understand that there are often other things going on when you’re doing those activities,” Cremata says. “And so the activity itself becomes secondary to the feeling or the inspiration that you might gain from it.” 

The award for Best Weekly Newspaper went across the canal to Chilkat Valley News. Former owner Kyle Clayton and reporter Lex Treinen were honored.  

Clayton became general manager for public radio station KHNS in late 2023. He says the award was a nice way to end his six-year career as a newspaper owner, which was often demanding.

“I think living in a small town, when your sources are your neighbors, you have to confront adversity, and controversy, and challenges in ways that you normally wouldn’t,” Claytons says. “And that if you’re, I think, doing the job in good faith, forces you to reckon with yourself –  what you think is true.”

A parent to two children, Clayton was ready for a slower pace. 

“It’s a, it’s a tough job,” Clayton says. “It’s a rewarding job. And I’m glad we have a new team in there that will keep doing a good job.”