The Louisiana Press Association announced the winners of the 2024 Better Newspaper Competition on May 2, at the Baton Rouge City Club. Each taking home 14 awards were the Ville Platte Gazette and The Basile Weekly. Both newspapers tied for second place for newspaper of the year in Division 4. Taking home the top spot in the division was Pointe Coupee Banner.
“We are extremely proud of the efforts of the editorial and advertising staffs at the Ville Platte Gazette and The Basile Weekly,” publisher Garland Forman said. “Their dedication to produce an award winning newspaper is noteworthy. Our staff is not very large, but the employees work hard each week to make the paper in Ville Platte and Basile enjoyable to read. I’m proud of their efforts each week to produce a quality paper for the readers.”
Among the major awards, Heather Bogard, associate editor of the Gazette took home the Gary Hebert Award for best layout and design. The winning entries were of the Boggy Bayou Festival royalty crowned and Scenes from crowning of Queen Cotton LXX.
The Basile Weekly won second place for the same award with 100 Days page/ Miss Basile page/ Memorial Day page.
The award is given in memory of Gary Hebert, who was a trendsetter in the world of weekly newspaper design. Under his reign, the Plaquemine Post/South received many awards for graphic design and effective use of spot color.
The following is a rundown of each of the awards.
For Best Ad Campaign, Kathy Longino and Monique Ardoin, of the Gazette, won second place for Sacred Heart Division IV State Semi-Finalist and first place for Don’t Drink and Drive.
For Best Multiple Advertiser Page, Longino and Ardoin won third place for 9-11-2011 23 Years.
For In-Paper Promotion, Darrel Lejeune, of The Basile Weekly, won third place for Gift Subscription, and Longino and Ardoin, of The Basile Weekly, won second place for Football parent ad.
In Best Breaking News Story, LeJeune won second place with “Tornado rips through Rhea’s.”
In Best Feature Photo, LeJeune won first place for a photo of Miss Basile Gracie Martel leading the queen’s pig chase.
In Best Feature Story, Tony Marks, of the Gazette, won second place for a story on Cajun and Creole heritage being displayed outside Austin, Texas.
In Best Front Page, the Gazette won second place, and The Basile Weekly won third place.
In Best Headline, LeJeune won first place with “Brick by Brick, Book by Book” and third place with “No LaFFing Matter.”
In Best News Photo, LeJeune won third place with a photo of a shed housing livestock between two homes on McGee-Johnson Street being completely swallowed in flames, and Marks won first place for a photo of Marcus Guillory reacting as he collects all seven rings during the first round of the Louisiana Tournoi.
For Best Sports Column, LeJeune won third place with a column on Nina still holding girls’ scoring record and Bearcat Pride.
In Best Single Editorial, LeJeune won third place for a column on Reflecting on Football Field Name.
In Best Special Section, The Basile Weekly won second place for Graduation Edition, and the Gazette won first place for Louisiana Cotton Festival.
For Best Sports Photo, Marks won second place for a photo of Sacred Heart girls’ basketball head coach Craig Whittington consoling senior player Kali Shiver as she exits the state semifinal game against Southern Lab and first place with a photo of Offensive MVP Michael Penix Jr. along with Defensive MVP Bralen Trice and other members of the Washington Huskies hoisting the Allstate Sugar Trophy.
In Best Sports Story, Marks won second place for a story on Sacred Heart bowing out in state semifinals, and LeJeune won first place with a story on young Basile cowgirl barrelling her way to national rodeo.
In Best Regular Column (Sam Hanna Award), Marks won third place with The Marks Post: Loaves and fish and The Marks Post: Do your part.
In Best Investigative Reporting (Gibbs Adams Award), LeJeune won third place with a story on LeRoy Soileau: From Basile coach, town clerk, and principal to Evangeline Parish clerk of court and superintendent of schools.
In General Excellence, the Gazette won second place with Catnipped and Un-seventh Heaven.
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