Columns Magazine won 10 awards for writing, editing, design and photography in the 1996 Washington Press Association’s Communicator of Excellence Competition, the group announced April 12.
In addition, the magazine won three awards in February in a regional competition of university publications sponsored by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), District VIII. In its eight years of publishing, Columns has won 60 awards in local, regional and national competitions.
For the third year in a row, the Washington Press Association chose Columns as the best color magazine in the state. “Nice mix of articles about the University and more general topics,” the judges said. “We loved the edgy, sometimes controversial tone. Great cover art, nice use of graphics and good ad placement.”
Associate Editor Jon Marmor won four press association awards, including a First Place Award for political features for his June 1996 cover story, “Crying Uncle”. The judges said, “An unexpected piece for an alumni magazine. It raises key issues and helps define the state of public opinion in the late ’90s.”
Marmor also won a First Place Award for editing the “On and Off the Ave.” pages in the magazine. His two photography awards include an honorable mention in black & white news photos for the “Ron Martinez” photo in the September 1996 issue and a third place in color feature photos for the “Party Pig” photo in the December 1996 issue.
Editor Tom Griffin won a First Place Award for publication editing and a First Place Award for publishing four-color magazines. He and Marmor shared an honorable mention for historical articles for the column they co-write, “Our Back Pages.”
Designer Ken Shafer won a First Place Award for three page layouts: “Putting the Puzzle Together,” September 1996; “Schoolhouse Rock,” December 1996; and “A Plague on Our Houses,” June 1996. UW Writer Nancy Wick won a Third Place Award for her feature “Playing with History” in the December 1995 issue. UW Writer Laurie McHale also won a Third Place Award for her feature “Putting the Puzzle Together” in the September 1996 issue.
The CASE District VIII competition included publications from five states and four Canadian provinces. Columns’ honors included a Silver Award in Illustrations to Illustrator Michael Carroll for his “Crying Uncle” cover in the June 1996 issue. UW Photographer Mary Levin and Designer Ken Shafer shared a Bronze Award in Photography for a portrait of Professor Maria Root in the December 1996 issue. Associate Editor Jon Marmor also won a Bronze Award in Photography for the “Party Pig” photo in that same issue.