Four members of the Metro Times editorial staff received awards from the Metropolitan Detroit branch of the Society of Professional Journalists last week.
Leading the way was arts editor Lisa M. Collins, who brought home two first-place awards and an honorable mention. A finalist for “Young Journalist of the Year,” Collins received first place in the investigative reporting category for “Dearth and Taxes,” a groundbreaking story about the City of Detroit’s dysfunctional property tax collection system. That story, which helped create momentum to change the city’s tax collection system, topped entries from both the Detroit News and Free Press. Collins also took home a first-place award for business reporting with “Open for Foreclosure,” an expose about the local impact of predatory lending practices. Collins received an honorable mention for her feature story, “Detroit is not alone” which looked at an international art project involving struggling big cities.
In competition among weekly papers, staff writer Ann Mullen, a finalist in the chapter’s “Journalist of the Year” honors, won first place for her news piece “Conspiracy Theory.” That story provided an intensive look into the trial of four men accused of terrorism.
News editor Curt Guyette, also one of four finalists for “Journalist of the Year,” received a second-place award and editor Jeremy Voas took third to join with Mullen in sweeping the weekly news category.
In other award news, freelance photographer Dirk Bakker received a third place award from the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies for his series of photographs titled “Great Walls of Detroit,” which looked at commercial art work on buildings throughout the city.
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