The Northern Advocate has won the top prize in the APN national newspaper awards, with the judges calling it "a wonderfully bright, accessible newspaper". The newspaper had "a glow about it", was very people-oriented and cared deeply about its readers, they said. Advocate journalists also took out many of the top honours,including best designer, best news writer and best feature writer. The APN Readership Awards, held earlier this week in Rotorua, are open to the company's nine New Zealand regional dailies. Advocate reporter Lindy Laird pulled off a rare double by winning both News Writer and Feature Writer of the Year. The judges praised her use of local knowledge and a hunch to uncover the winner of the $18 million Lotto prize, one of the biggest scoops of 2006. Her human interest stories were written with great skill and compassion. Among her feature writing entries, the judges singled out her story about the Hukerenui widow whose son accidentally shot her husband as "particularly gripping". "Hard-working and versatile" design editor Colleen Thorpe was named Designer of the Year for proving that good design "isn't about occasional flash and dazzle, but about consistently making ordinary inside pages look fresh, attractive and easy to navigate". Laura Franklin, last year's top editor, was a finalist for the Editor of the Year. Tim Eves was a finalist for Sports Writer of the Year. Peter de Graaf was a finalist for Columnist of the Year while honorary mentions went to art critic Grant Beran and columnist Joel Maxwell. In the Photographer of the Year category, Tania Webb could easily have made the top three, the judges said. The Northern Advocate's win in the premier category, Readership Team of the Year, was put down to teamwork, strong morale in the newsroom and a culture of inclusion - backed up by two years of circulation growth and a relaunched weekend section.
