Daily Inter Lake claims 15 awards in Montana newspaper contest

The Hagadone Montana Publishing group of newspapers in Northwest Montana earned a number of awards for reporting, photography and advertising in the annual Montana Newspaper Association’s Better Newspaper Contest.

Award winners were announced at the 135th annual convention of the association held Oct. 15 and 16. This year’s virtual convention was hosted from Kalispell.

The Daily Inter Lake’s award haul included first-place honors going to the late Rick Funk for best column writing. Funk wrote the “Tattered Tales” column for the Inter Lake until his death last December. He compiled many of his stories into a book called “Tom’s Tattered Tales.”

“Mr. Funk is laugh-out-loud funny and descriptive, like when he says his dog was a ‘cross between a Dachshund and a Dungeness crab.’ I wish I could have read more,” one contest judge wrote.

Funk also took second place for outdoors writing.

Other first-place awards for the Daily Inter Lake went to Assistant Editor Kianna Gardner for best graphic, and to the advertising team for best marketing campaign and best ad to promote services.

News Editor Lynnette Hintze earned second place for column writing for her popular “As I See It” column.

“Ms. Hintze writes about things many people can identify with, whether it’s a mom with Alzheimer’s, a terrible experience with moving, or the hype over pumpkin pie spice,” a judge commented.

Photographer Casey Kreider took second place for an image he captured of a mountain goat leaping across a cliff in the Jewel Basin, which judges called “Creative, colorful, and fun. This photo is an editor’s dream.”

Gardner took second place in the competitive “continuing coverage” category for her extensive reporting in the “Asbestos Aftermath” series.

“A lot of in-depth reporting and explanation. Good data and facts used to educate the public on the extent of the issue. In-depth interviews help personalize the issue,” the judges wrote.

Reporter Mackenzie Reiss took second and third place for video production. Judges said her video “Celebrating nonagenarians” was an example of “Great production, editing and sound, and nice stories and advice from the wise!”

Former Inter Lake reporter Mary Cloud Taylor won second place for lifestyle coverage and designer Heidi Gaiser took third place for her Montana Life page layouts.

Other advertising awards included third place for best online ad, best sponsor page and best use of local photography.

All totaled the Daily Inter Lake won 15 awards in the Division 5 category for daily newspapers.

The Hagadone Montana Publishing weekly newspapers also racked up a number of awards.

The Whitefish Pilot won first place for investigative reporting for its in-depth coverage of top issues facing the community. The Pilot staff won 10 awards combined.

The Hungry Horse News was recognized for its photography, including first place to editor Chris Peterson for best news photo, and first place to Jeremy Weber for best sports photo. The Hungry Horse News hauled in 19 total awards.

The Billings Gazette earned the The Sam Gilluly Award for best daily newspaper in Montana, and the Flathead Beacon earned the Thomas Dimsdale Award for best weekly newspaper in Montana.

Awards for the Montana Newspaper Hall of Fame, Master Editor/Publisher and the Dick Crockford Distinguished Service Award were not presented this year. Instead, nominations for 2020 will reopen with 2020 honorees recognized next year alongside our 2021 recipients.