Catholic Spirit website tops among Catholic newspapers

.
If you don't have the wherewithall to subscribe to th print edition of the Spirit, at a minimum you should subscribe to their free weekly newsletter that gives the headline news. It may be found at the top of their right sidebar here http://www.thecatholicspirit.com/

Last year it was the print version of The Catholic Spirit that was the best in North America; this year it’s www.TheCatholicSpirit.com that has earned top recognition.

The web site of the newspaper of the Catholic Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis took first place in the annual journalism competition of the Catholic Press Association of the United States and Canada.

The awards were announced June 4 in New Orleans at the annual Catholic Media Convention.

The print version of The Catholic Spirit finish second to the Catholic newspaper from New York City, Catholic New York.

In judging by members of the American Press Institute, TheCatholicSpirit.com was praised for being well-organized, extremely easy to navigate, and for available personalization features. The site was designed in-house by Catholic Spirit staffer Craig Berry.

“To reach certain segments of the community you have to have a web presence and a good one,” noted Bob Zyskowski, Catholic Spirit associate publisher. “As much as our staff appreciates this recognition, what’s really fulfilling is seeing the report each month of the hundreds of thousands of page views on our site. That means that the excellent Catholic journalism we do is reaching so many more people.

“And The Catholic Spirit is so fortunate to have the genius of Craig Berry helping tell the story of our vital and active Catholic community this way. He keeps stepping on the accelerator with new media, pushing all of us. We’ve already passed 11,000 followers on Twitter!”

The Catholic Spirit staff also earned awards in a number of other categories, including news writing, editorials and columns. They include:

· Best Editorial Page or Section – 1^st Place, “This Catholic Life” section.

· News Writing about a National Event – 1^st. Place, Maria Wiering, for her story about health care reform -- "U.S. Bishops want Healthcare for All -- Including the Unborn"; 3^rd Place, Julie Carroll, for her piece on human trafficking -- "Modern-day Slavery a Reality in Minnesota, Across Globe."

· Best Regular Column on Culture The Arts and Leisure – 2^nd Place, Maria Wiering, for "Artfully".

· Best Editorial on a Local Issue – 2^nd Place, Joe Towalski, for his editorial on Catholic education -- "Our Catholic Schools Need, Deserve Our Support";

· Best Editorial on a National or International Issue – Honorable Mention, Joe Towalski, for "Life Without Parole Helps Build Anti-Death Penalty Support."