Staff at the Lansing State Journal won more than two dozen awards in the Michigan Press Association’s annual Better Newspaper Contest.
The newspaper swept the government/political news, business news and feature categories, winning four awards in the government category, three in business news coverage and three in features.
The newspaper also took the top two places in best enterprise reporting.
Judges awarded seven first-place awards to LSJ staff, including:
Reporter Ken Palmer won first place in the crime and justice category for his coverage of the trial of Lansing parents Joshua and Rachel Piland, who were charged with open murder and first-degree child abuse in connection with the death of their three-day-old daughter Abigail. Prosecutors argued the Pilands refused to get necessary medical care for Abigail, who died of jaundice. They were convicted and sentenced.
Palmer also won a first-place award in the news feature category for his interview with family members after the Pilands’ trial, “Family of faith-healing parents convicted of murder still reeling from 8-year ordeal.”
Reporter Matt Mencarini won first place in the news enterprise category for his story, “Will full scope of LPD lieutenant’s moonlighting ever be known? Records give glimpse of what happened.” The story was an investigation following the criminal case of former Lansing Police Department Lt. Ryan Wilcox, and examined how Wilcox — a 23-year department veteran and former union representative — could brazenly violate city policy and embezzle potentially 10s of thousands of dollars without any of his coworkers in the detective bureau or supervisors noticing.
Reporter Rachel Greco was awarded first place in the business news category for “Rite Aid closures left vacancies in Greater Lansing. Filling them will be challenging, experts say.” The story examined the dozen vacant buildings left scattered throughout the Lansing region after the company folded, and what developers expected would happen with them.
Photographer Nick King won first place for best sports photograph for his image of MSU football receiver Nick Marsh in a snow-filled game against Rutgers.
Photographer Matthew Dae Smith won first place for best video presentation for his video story “Guitars for veterans,” a feature on a group at the VFW National Home in Eaton Rapids.
Former reporter Mike Ellis won a first place in the government/political news category for “Residents pressure police to get speeding, racing under control in Lansing.”
Staff won eight second-place awards, including:
Mencarini in the news enterprise category for “UM-Sparrow, McLaren health systems are worth billions. Is bigger better for patients?”
Editor Susan Vela in the government/political category for “Small town dispute blows up big over Electric Light Parade.”
Greco in the business news category for “Retail and restaurant owners say metered parking is hurting Lansing businesses. Are city officials ready to make changes?”
Greco in the feature story category for “Kit homes were ordered from store catalogs before 1950. How many are still in Lansing?”
Photographer Robert Killips in the news photo category for his image “Sgt. Swartz Comes Home,” taken at the the ceremony in which Sgt. James Swartz’s remains were buried. Swartz was killed in World War II.
Smith in the feature photo category for “Northern Lights delight.”
King in the sports photo category for “East Lansing celebration” after the Trojans won in the Division 1 state semifinal in March of 2025.
Smith in best video presentation for “Scenes from the Bump-and-Run Derby at the Eaton County Fair.”
Third-place awards went to Mencarini in the government/political news category for “Township clerks run elections for half of Michigan residents. But what if no one wants the job?”; Greco in the business news category for “New owners have big plans for Owosso Speedway, investing ‘millions’ in Michigan’s oldest track”; and Greco in the feature category for “How a Lansing area nonprofit is changing lives by training service dogs.”
Honorable mentions were awarded to King in the best sports photo category for “MSU’s Tre Holloman pushes away rivals” and Palmer for “‘What is clean water worth?’ Long-awaited Montgomery Drain project nears $50M, completion.”
Reporter Karly Graham also won five awards for her work with the Petoskey News-Review before she joined the LSJ staff. Those included first place in the education news category for “Parents air concerns about carbon dioxide levels at Cheboygan’s East Elementary School,” second place in the government/political news category for “Resort Twp. supervisor/assessor may face discipline by State Tax Commission,” third place in the business news category for “Digging into ‘The Archives’: McLean & Eakin to open used bookstore in downtown Petoskey,” third place in the environmental/climate change/weather news category for “’I didn’t do this to myself’: Pellston residents hear PFAS update at town hall meeting,” and third place for best beat coverage on the education beat.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: LSJ staff wins 25 awards in Michigan Press Association newspaper contest
Reporting by Lansing State Journal staff, Lansing State Journal / Lansing State Journal
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