Why Public Notices Matter | National award recognition

The following article appeared in the March 6, 2017 issue of the Reporter & Farmer, the newspaper where I work. It was written by my colleague Emre K. Erku. 

Another story about this award appeared in a neighboring daily newspaper which you can read here.

Local public notice article leads to writer’s national recognition 

Amanda Fanger wins 2017 Public Notice Journalism Award

Reporter & Farmer staff writer Amanda Fanger is now a nationally acclaimed journalist.

For her efforts in uncovering embezzlement allegations within the government body of Grenville last spring, Fanger was named winner of the 2017 Public Notice Journalism Award by the Public Notice Resource Center Feb. 27.

Alongside national recognition, she’ll be honored at the National Press Club during a free trip to Washington, D.C. March 16.

“It’s almost too much to take in,” said Fanger of her selection. “It makes me stop and realize how much I’ve put into my work. There’s so many moving components to a newspaper; I don’t know if people assume we’re just handed these stories.”

According to the PNRC, Fanger’s selection was based on her ability to scratch “below the surface of a public notice.” This included spending months investigating a tip concerning a local financial officer allegedly carrying out “employee dishonesty,” which was noted in the official monthly Grenville town proceedings printed in the public notice section of the Reporter & Farmer on March 21 last year.

I Promised News | A national journalism award

Here's the news I promised. The following is a press release that originally appeared here.

South Dakota reporter wins 2017 national 

Public Notice Journalism Award

Amanda Fanger, a reporter for Reporter & Farmer, a weekly newspaper in rural Day County, South Dakota, today was named winner of the 2017 Public Notice Journalism Award. Fanger won for a story that scratched below the surface of a public notice (see PDF of story here) to reveal a potential embezzlement scheme in one of the small towns within her paper’s coverage area.

Fanger will receive a $500 award and a free trip to Washington, D.C., where she will be honored at a March 16 dinner at the National Press Club.

Jim Lockwood of The Scranton (Penn.) Times-Tribune and Victor Parkins of The Milan (Tenn.) Mirror-Exchange were named winners of second- and third-place, respectively. Lockwood won the Public Notice Journalism Award in 2015.

“There were many worthy entries submitted in this year’s contest, so the winners should be especially proud of their great work,” said PNRC President Bradley L. Thompson II, chairman and CEO of the Detroit Legal News Co., which sponsored the prize. “Reporting on public notices is another way newspapers serve their readers and inform their communities.”

Oh Yeah, I Still Have A Blog | On how dreams don't always look like we thought they would

Oh wow, would you look at that? I still have a blog. Never mind that it's been just about forever since I've posted anything. Hi to anyone who is still reading after such a long respite. 

It wasn't intentional to let this blog sit listless for so long. Over the course of the last couple of years, my life has taken a series of different turns which has caused this blog to take a backseat. I don't want this post to stir hope for a faithful return to blogging anytime in the immediate future, but I do have some exciting writing-related news I want to share with the world soon, so stick around. 

Even with all the changes in my life, while I haven't been writing for this blog, one thing is certain: My life is consumed, more now than ever, with words. In fact, I'm pretty sure I'm generating more content now than ever before in my life.

This morning I caught myself reflecting, looking back on my younger self who had first discovered the art of putting thoughts into written word. That younger me had just realized her dream of using this medium to make a living for herself.

Now, that dream is a reality.