Business Journal Scoops Honors

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The professional association of business publications has given the Los Angeles Business Journal seven journalism awards, including its top prize: the gold award for general excellence. It marked the fifth time in the last six years that the Business Journal essentially was named the best such newspaper in the country.

In fact, the Business Journal has won the top award for large tabloids in seven of the last 11 years and nine of the last 16. No other large business journal has come close; Crain’s Chicago Business is second with four gold awards for general excellence since 1993, but it hasn’t won a gold since 2001, according to the professional association’s records.

What’s more, the Business Journal’s affiliate newspaper, the San Fernando Valley Business Journal, won the gold award for general excellence in the division for small tabloids. It marks a first for that publication. The Valley paper also won a gold award in a reporting contest.

“I am profoundly proud of everyone on our news and production teams for their individual contributions that made this possible,” said Matt Toledo, the Los Angeles Business Journal’s longtime publisher and chief executive who also founded the Valley newspaper 18 years ago.

The awards are given each year by the Alliance of Area Business Publications, a trade group made up of regional business publications, such as city business journals and state or regional business magazines. The awards were presented at a banquet June 21 in Baltimore, where the AABP held its annual conference. Judging for the awards is done by the faculty of the University of Missouri journalism school.

In giving the award to the Los Angeles Business Journal, the judges wrote: “This is a publication that knows how to keep its readership informed and entertained while offering a reflection in the community. The writing is bright; reporters dig deep.”

In judging the general excellence category, judges assess the overall quality of three sample newspapers. Charles Crumpley, the Los Angeles Business Journal’s editor, believes that helps the publication in this important category.

“Most business journals do several things well, sometimes really well,” he said. “But we strive to do everything well. I know that sounds trite, but we work conscientiously to keep our standards high throughout. Not just in spots but front to back, every issue.”

In giving the gold award for general excellence to the Valley journal, the judges said: “This publication puts a premium on delivering a news-rich product to a wide range of population centers in Southern California. It is exemplary in its ability to provide both quantity and quality in authoritative news reports.”

Laurence Darmiento, the former managing editor of the Los Angeles Business Journal, is editor of the Valley paper.

The AABP’s system is like the Olympics in that it gives gold, silver and bronze awards. Here are the other prizes won by the two Business Journals:

Howard Fine, a veteran reporter with the Los Angeles Business Journal, won a bronze in the category of Best Print Scoop for large tabloids for his article headlined “Might Oxy Ditch L.A. HQ to Hang Its Hat in Houston?”

Fine was first to report that it appeared Occidental Petroleum Corp. was set to move its headquarters from Los Angeles, which was officially announced two months after the story was published.

Elliot Golan, a reporter for the San Fernando Valley Business Journal, won a gold award in the category of Best Print Scoop for small tabloids for his story headlined “Hundreds of Apartments Eyed for Glendale Block.”

Golan was the first to disclose a redevelopment plan was taking shape in the heart of Glendale.

Los Angeles Business Journal reporter James Rufus Koren won a silver in the Best Feature category for his article headlined “Riches Under the Radar.” It was the lead story in the Wealthiest Angelenos issue and featured a local business owner who was a previously undisclosed billionaire.

The judges said, “Superb details and sourcing, not to mention the writer’s strong voice, make the piece a great read – informative, too.”

Robert Landry, the design director for both papers, won two design awards: a bronze for Best Feature Layout and a bronze for Best Special Section Design. Both were based on his layout and design of the Wealthiest Angelenos section in the L.A. paper.

The judges said, in part: “The information is simply displayed in its design, and the graphics convey content without a lot of overlap. The typography has good hierarchy. Color use is consistent, to help unify the design.”

Alfred Lee, the Los Angeles Business Journal’s legal affairs reporter, won two prizes in important categories: a silver for Best Body of Work and a silver for Best Investigative story. Both awards were for articles on the questionable results of the EB5 program, which gives green cards to foreign investors who create jobs in the United States.

“Lee demonstrates hard, dogged reporting and excellent writing in his many entries,” the judges wrote. “While the (EB5) program works in some cases, Lee is aggressive in outing the false promises – one involved hundreds of millions of dollars in biofuel projects around America. In other work, Lee exposes bad real estate deals and poor government oversight. Lee’s hallmark is an unwillingness to let a story go until it’s completely and well told.”

Earlier this year, Lee won an award for investigative reporting from the Society of American Business Editors and Writers for his EB5 stories. Koren also won a SABEW award but in the Breaking News category for first disclosing that Amazon was bringing its Amazon Fresh delivery service to Los Angeles.

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