Media and the Law Awards Presented
Article Date: Friday, July 27, 2007
Written By: Russell Rawlings
The 2007 North Carolina Bar Association Media and the Law Awards were presented Friday night in conjunction with the 134th annual convention of the N.C. Press Association at the Omni Hotel in Charlotte.
Ames Alexander accepts award from Janet Ward Black. |
NCBA President Janet Ward Black presented the awards.
The Media and the Law awards program was established in 1989 and is conducted annually by the NCBA Communications Committee. Judging is based on accurate, informative coverage of law-related issues which fosters greater public understanding of the legal system and the role of lawyers in society.
Nominations are submitted by member newspapers to the N.C. Press Association and forwarded to the Communications Committee for review. Law-related reporting is judged separately in the divisions of daily and nondaily newspapers, while the competition for best series is open.
Lynn Hotaling accepts award from Janet Ward Black. |
This year’s recipient in the Nondaily Division is Lynn Hotaling of the Sylva Herald for “Judge Rules for Airport Authority in Suit Against County.” The article and sidebar provided excellent insight into legal matters involving the airport authority, county commissioners and the Open Meetings Law.
Andrea Weigl of The News & Observer is the recipient in the Daily Division for her coverage of North Carolina’s practice of conducting executions at 2 a.m. Weigl’s article dealt with difficult subject matter in an informative manner and went to great lengths to interview officials from other states that have shifted their executions to early evening hours.
Hugh Stevens, longtime legal counsel for The News & Observer, accepts award on behalf of Andrea Weigl from Janet Ward Black. |
Ames Alexander and Gary Wright of the Charlotte Observer are this year’s winners in the category of Best Series for “Lawyers’ Bills to State Don’t Add Up.” Alexander was honored for the third consecutive year whereas Wright has received this award two of the past three years.
Their series on apparent abuses in the indigent defense system represented a splendid combination of research and writing, not to mention a valuable public service to the citizens of North Carolina.