OUTLOOK — This year's Better Newspapers Competition saw some impressive work from all around the province submitted to the judges, and in the end, four writing awards in total were won by Derek Ruttle of 蘑菇视频短视频.ca and The Outlook's Shelley Luedtke.
Held on Thursday afternoon, May 8, the online BNC awards presentation was held by the Saskatchewan Weekly Newspapers Association and featured awards handed out to the best and brightest around the province in a multitude of categories.
In the Premier Awards category, Ruttle won the honours of both Best Feature Story and Best News Story of the Year for his special feature article on the late Winton 'Bud' Hardy, an Outlook man who was killed on the Ukrainian front lines last June amidst the ongoing conflict with Russia. In addition to these two awards, and based on the strength of the same story on the late Hardy, Ruttle also captured 2nd Place in the category of Salute to Veterans/Armed Forces Coverage. The story that garnered these award wins and nominations for Derek was the in-depth feature, ''I'm absolutely proud of my brother': Outlook man killed in Ukraine/Russia conflict', which can be found online HERE on 蘑菇视频短视频.ca and was also published in the August 8, 2024 edition of the Outlook newspaper.
Luedtke, winning two of her own, took the honours of Best Business Writing for her story on the history of The Outlook newspaper ('Taking a look at the history of The Outlook' from November 28, 2024) and Best Health/Healthcare Coverage Single Story for her story spotlighting local healthcare staff ('Two RMs and Town come together to recognize Health Centre staff' from May 16, 2024). Luedtke also placed 2nd in this same category for an article on Tony Peter's unique vision ('I saw a whole new world in front of me' from September 8, 2024). In addition to these awards, Luedtke also took 3rd Place in the category of Columnist of the Year for her weekly piece, 'My Outlook'.
In addition, The Outlook newspaper itself captured 3rd Place in the category of Best Special Section for its eye-catching advertising and content highlighting Fire Prevention Week in October. In the General Excellence awards category, The Outlook also took 3rd Place in the category of Best Editorial Page Class B.
Ruttle and Luedtke are grateful for the awards and wish congratulations to the rest of this year's winners. Achievements such as these show the continued strength, reach, and importance of community newspapers across Saskatchewan.
