Independent earns six first-place awards from New England Press Association
BY STEVE SHEPPARD INDEPENDENT WRITER
The Nantucket Independent garnered six first place awards, including top honors for Advertising General Excellence, in the New England Press Association Better Newspaper Contest for 2007. The awards were announced Saturday night at the New England Press Association's annual dinner held at the Boston Marriott Copley Place hotel.

In Boston this past weekend, the staff of The Independent includes (standing, l to r): Dan Drake, Kady Decker, Rob Benchley, Steve Sheppard. (Sitting, l to r): Hadley Dutra, Gennifer Costanzo, Don Costanzo, Peter B. Brace.

The Nantucket Independent received ten awards in all for advertising, arts and entertainment, newspaper promotion, photography and sports.

In singling out The Nantucket Independent for

Advertising General Excellence for a second consecutive year, the judges wrote: "The size of this paper definitely makes it stand out among its competitors. It is much easier to read, pick up and carry….(T)he overall design of the ads makes them feel as though they are just as much content as the articles. The Arts section is superior. The ad designs as well as content really mesh with the audience they serve and encompass all aspects of the arts. The real estate section is fantastic, thanks to the heavier stock paper and high print quality. Ads are laid out with large photos, mostly full color."

The Independent also earned recognition in the following categories:

•Arts and Entertainment Section- First place. "This section, dedicated to the Nantucket Film Festival, did an amazing job of not just highlighting the films on tap but some of the atmosphere surrounding a festival not yet co-opted by the champagne-swilling, swaggrabbing denizens making the rounds at Sundance or Cannes….The amount of local copy was impressively overwhelming, and the 'Indie film generator' was pure genius (and awfully fun)."

•Real Estate Ad- First and Second place. In first place comments, judges said: "This ad is very creative. It takes the usual real estate ad with a photo or two and turns it into a multi-level marketing piece. They're not just selling the house here; they're selling the amenities and location which is missing from most real estate ads….This ad is unique, fun and effective."

Second place comments included: "This ad is very classy….The layout is spectacular. It's not often that black and white photos are favorable but they really work in this ad. It gives the ad a chic look and directs your eye focus on the company's sophisticated logo."

•Best Idea for Generating Ad Sales- First place for the Nantucket Wedding Planner and Special Events Guide. "Great targeted product focusing on a niche that was untapped in the local market. Good overall job listening to what the clients and readers wanted, building a product with the right content and then selling that readership audience to advertisers…."

•Self/Circulation Promotion- First place. "The Nantucket Independent's contest last winter was a good vehicle to entice readers to read their paper more completely. The rules were simple and the prizes were good and worth the reader's time. The follow up ads on the winners were well done…."

•Photo illustration- First place, Rob Benchley. "Nicely done," the judges said. "A good combination of Photoshop work, lighting and hands-on photography…"

•Sponsorship Page- Second place. "This is a clean use of photo, color and design…"

•Sports Story- Second place, Steve Sheppard. "Sheppard lures the reader in from his first sentence" and "skillfully describes a slice of American sport that few are familiar with," the judges said of his story on croquet.

•Sports Column- Third place, Peter B. Brace, for Nantucket Night Hikes. "This entry appealed to the senses," the judges said. "(T)his type of writing lends itself to some solid transitions and the columnist made

many of those work well." I