ESTEVAN - The Estevan Mercury brought home a couple of honours from this year’s Saskatchewan Weekly Newspaper Association Better Newspaper Awards, which were handed out Friday.
Slotted in Class D, which is for newspapers with a circulation of at least 6,500, the Mercury won the award for best front page. The Mercury finished with a total score of 140 out of 150, attaining perfect scores for photo, layout and typography, and high marks for its content.
Estevan Mercury reporter Anastasiia Bykhovskaia also won the award for Best Health/Healthcare Coverage, Single Story or Feature for the second straight year. This time she was recognized for her article Miracle No. 2: Bangsund family welcomes new baby carried by surrogate mother.
The touching article chronicles how Estevan’s Melissa Mosley served as a surrogate for former Estevan residents Tim and Chewn Bangsund (nee Pham).
Bykhovskaia received praise for the quality of writing, clarity, impact to the community and content.
Bykhovskaia also finished second for top columnist, thanks to a series of opinion pieces that appeared in the Mercury in February and March.
The Mercury picked up two other top-three finishes. One was the best overall paper in Class D, finishing with a total of 890 out of 1,000. The Mercury received full marks for community news, photography, local features and classifieds, and was also praised for its advertising content.
And the Mercury was third for the Best Editorial Page in Class D.
