Kay Reynolds' cover illustration and Isthmus' Word of Mouth newsletter.
Isthmus has won five national awards from the Association of Alternative Newsmedia, including two first-place finishes.
Our weekly newsletter, Word of Mouth, curated by associate editor Linda Falkenstein, won top honors in the newsletter category and Kay Reynolds won first place for her Valentine Day-themed illustration for the February 2023 print edition of Isthmus.
The awards were announced at the group’s annual conference in Charleston, South Carolina, on July 12.
Word of Mouth, which is emailed to some 30,000 subscribers every Tuesday, includes recommendations from staff, contributors and readers on what they are cooking, eating, shopping for, listening to, etc. The contest judges had this to say about the newsletter:
“Fun and engaging. This newsletter has a POV and it’s clear why a reader would subscribe to follow along with what the staff recommends. This stands out as being more than just a marketing vehicle to push existing stories. This newsletter gives the people and paper a personality to follow and a reason to keep opening. Nice, clean design.”
Kay Reynolds’ “Queer Cardinals” illustration was also a top-place finisher.
Judge’s comment: “Compositionally superior both as an illustration and how it interacts with the publication logo. Stylistically resolved — love the line drawings combined with the larger swaths of color.”
Read about the artist and the illustration in Behind the Cover.
Ellen Meany
Judith Davidoff with Isthmus' first place 2024 AAN awards.
Editor Judith Davidoff with Isthmus' first place 2024 Association of Alternative Newsmedia awards, presented at the group's annual conference in Charleston, South Carolina.
Erik Ness won second place in the environmental coverage category for his piece on the fight over the Enbridge pipeline in northern Wisconsin, “We’re in our forever home.” He explores the battle through a different lens, namely, whether treaty rights and the Ojibwe’s spiritual connection to the land could be used to keep the pipeline off its land and waters.
The judges called it a “Well-written, deep dive into Enbridge. Great reporting, including on-the-ground kayaking.”
Former staff writer Eric Murphy won third place in the solutions journalism category for his cover story, “Can ’social housing’ help address Madison’s affordability crisis?” There were no judges comments available for this category.
And Isthmus editor Judith Davidoff won honorable mention for her newsletter, Isthmus Insider.
Judge’s comment: “This newsletter harkens back to the good-days of blogging and making a one-to-one connection with a reader. Judith’s stories connect her to the community and help readers know who she is as a leader of an important publication in their community. Good transparency and variety.”
But wait, there’s more: We are always looking for new contributors to our now award-winning newsletter, Word of Mouth. If interested please email your recommendation to Linda Falkenstein at lindaf@isthmus.com. Keep them “short and snappy” and send a headshot if you’ve never contributed before.
And if you are not yet a subscriber to Word of Mouth, Isthmus Insider or On Tap, our newsletter of entertainment picks, please sign up at isthmus.com. Like all of our content, there is no fee.
And if you’d like to support this award-winning journalism, please become a member or make a one-time donation.
