Staff report

The Vindicator and Tribune Chronicle won seven awards at Sunday’s Associated Press Media Editors awards ceremony, including two first-place finishes for Mahoning County courthouse and crime reporter Ed Runyan.

The newspapers compete in Division II against newspapers such as The Lima News, Sandusky Register, The Chronicle-Telegram (Elyria and Lorain) and Springfield News-Sun.

“We are very proud of the work our newsroom does in telling the stories of our communities. The awards earned while being judged among our peers confirm the quality of their work,” newspaper General Manager Ted Snyder said.

Runyan won first place in the Best News Photo category for a photo titled “Aftermath,” which depicted a man with a bloody face sitting outside the Realty Tower, which had just exploded on May 28, 2024.

The judges in their comments said “the three human elements are structured to draw the eye from one to another. A very powerful moment showing the aftermath of the explosion.”

Runyan also won first place in the Best Investigative Reporting category for a story titled “Former foster child: Warnings about rapist were not heeded,” which was about a man who was convicted of raping a young girl at the foster home where he lived with his grandmother.

In their comments, the judges said, “this is what watchdog journalism is all about: Finding the thread of a story and following it wherever it leads, even when it appears the story is over.”

Runyan also won third place in the Best Explanatory / Enterprise Reporting category for a series of stories about the Realty Tower explosion investigation.

“Runyan’s stories presented a good mix of document sourcing and interviews in what started as a breaking news event but what became a search for the why, the when, the how and the chaos that can happen during emergencies. A fine set of stories in an overall deep category,” the judges wrote.

Politics and Youngstown City Hall reporter David Skolnick took home two third-place awards. One was in the Breaking News category for three articles: Republicans sweeping all of the elected offices in Trumbull County and winning more offices in Mahoning County than they did in 90 years, the Mahoning County Board of Elections firing the company that printed its mail-in ballots because 10,000 of them still had not been printed after early voting began and about Youngstown fire Chief Barry Finley being criticized for racial remarks he made to two fire union officials.

The judges in their comments said “Skolnick’s coverage goes beyond the typical breaking news report and offers deep insight on key players and the impact of the news. His election coverage captured a turning point in the area’s political history, and his other entries gave readers crucial information on important events.”

Skolnick’s other third-place win was in the Best Public Service category for a story on Trumbull County Recorder candidate Dawn Zinni, a Republican, who had numerous lawsuits filed against her by creditors for unpaid bills totaling $100,000.

“Great job handling an investigation and digging further into the candidate’s background and the lawsuit, this piece provides an excellent example of service journalism, assisting the community by providing in-depth coverage to help them make choices (and vote!), good clear writing overall, AP style, well organized. Very nicely done!,” the judges wrote.

The newspaper’s sports department captured second and third place in the Best Sports Enterprise category. Brian Yauger won second for a story titled “Gradishar’s journey to Pro Football Hall of Fame began in Champion.”

The judges wrote “Exhaustive, detail-rich look at the career of Randy Gradishar on the occasion of his Pro Football Hall of Fame induction. Lot of work went into this one.”

Neel Madhavan captured third place for a story titled “Former Harding Panthers reflect on team’s 1974 championship season.” The judges wrote, “Feature more than enterprise, but you can never go wrong writing about the high school glory days. Good look at an iconic season.”

“Our newsroom team does great work in covering the entire Mahoning Valley and bringing the news of the day to readers of The Vindicator and Tribune Chronicle. We’re proud of our award winners and appreciate the dedication, passion and skill they bring to what they do every day,” Editor Ed Puskas said.