The Washington Informer earned five newspaper and journalism awards at the 2023 National Newspaper Publishers Association Fund’s Messenger Awards.
The newspaper was recognized for its outstanding education and environment reporting, and community service. The Informer also received accolades for print layout and design, and its website.
“I am grateful for our hard-working and committed team that consistently seeks to educate, entertain, inform, and inspire our readers,” stated Washington Informer Publisher Denise Rolark Barnes.
She also thanked Informer readers and those who continue to support WIN-TV, the newspaper’s flagship web-based program that airs over several social media channels, including Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, at noon on Fridays.
Meanwhile, the Sacramento Observer added the seventh John B. Russwurm Award to its storied history, scoring a resounding victory during the ceremony.
The Russwurm Award is presented to the top Black-owned newspaper in the country.
In all, the publication, established in 1962, took home 16 awards including Publisher of the Year.
Observer Publisher Larry Lee thanked his NNPA peers and his staff for the newspaper’s continued success.
“On a very humbling night during the NNPA Fund Messenger Awards, the Sacramento Observer won 16 awards including the Russwurm Award as the nation’s best Black newspaper,” Lee celebrated.
“I was also awarded Publisher of the Year. I cannot express how proud I am of our team,” he said.
The 2023 NNPA Fund Messenger Awards took place in Nashville, Tenn., during the NNPA’s annual convention.
Legendary Tennessee Tribune Publisher Rosetta Miller-Perry served as host and help guide members of the Black Press through Music City with a reception and tour of the National Museum of African American Music, and a taste of southern hospitality.
The annual awards help bolster a week of meetings, panel discussions, and other events that brings together more than 200 African American publishers and media company owners, their partners, and sponsors.
While the Observer took home the biggest awards haul, and The Informer earned five, other multiple-award winners included the Atlanta Voice, Houston Defender, and the Philadelphia Tribune.
Below is a list of winners from the NNPA Fund Messenger Awards:
| NNPA FUND MESSENGER AWARDS 2023 | |
| Category | winners |
| Newsletter Excellence Award | Michigan Chronicle |
| Newsletter Excellence Award | New Pittsburg Courier |
| Newsletter Excellence Award | The Philadelphia Tribune |
| Category | winners |
| Layout & Design (Tabloid) – Robert L. Vann Award | Houston Defender |
| Layout & Design (Tabloid) – Robert L. Vann Award | The Observer Newspapers |
| Layout & Design (Tabloid) – Robert L. Vann Award | Washington Informer |
| Category | winners |
| Original Photography Use Award | Atlanta Voice |
| Original Photography Use Award | Birmingham Times |
| Original Photography Use Award | St. Louis American |
| Category | winners |
| Fashion, Beauty & Lifestyle – Ada S. Franklin Award | Houston Defender |
| Fashion, Beauty & Lifestyle – Ada S. Franklin Award | Michigan Chronicle |
| Fashion, Beauty & Lifestyle – Ada S. Franklin Award | The Observer Newspapers |
| Category | winners |
| Health – Emory O. Jackson Award | Atlanta Voice |
| Health – Emory O. Jackson Award | The Observer Newspapers |
| Health – Emory O. Jackson Award | Houston Defender |
| Category | winners |
| Special Edition – Leon W. Washington Award | Seattle Medium |
| Special Edition – Leon W. Washington Award | The Philadelphia Tribune |
| Special Edition – Leon W. Washington Award | The Observer Newspapers |
| Category | winners |
| Faith & Religion Award | The New York Amsterdam News |
| Faith & Religion Award | The Philadelphia Tribune |
| Faith & Religion Award | Wave Community Newspapers |
| Category | winners |
| Education – Frank L. Stanley Award | Birmingham Times |
| Education – Frank L. Stanley Award | Houston Defender |
| Education – Frank L. Stanley Award | Washington Informer |
| Category | winners |
| Video Campaign Award | Atlanta Voice |
| Video Campaign Award | Texas Metro News |
| Video Campaign Award | The Observer Newspapers |
| Category | winners |
| Layout & Design (Broadsheet) – Robert L. Vann Award | Afro American Newspaper (Baltimore) |
| Layout & Design (Broadsheet) – Robert L. Vann Award | Michigan Chronicle |
| Layout & Design (Broadsheet) – Robert L. Vann Award | The Philadelphia Tribune |
| Category | winners |
| Community Engagement – W. A. Scott II Award | Houston Defender |
| Community Engagement – W. A. Scott II Award | St. Louis American |
| Community Engagement – W. A. Scott II Award | The New York Amsterdam News |
| Category | winners |
| Youth & Children Award | Atlanta Voice |
| Youth & Children Award | Houston Defender |
| Youth & Children Award | New Tri-State Defender |
| Category | winners |
| Social & Criminal Justice – Ida B. Wells Award | Final Call |
| Social & Criminal Justice – Ida B. Wells Award | St. Louis American |
| Social & Criminal Justice – Ida B. Wells Award | The New York Amsterdam News |
| Category | winners |
| Editorial & Opinion -Robert S. Abbott Award | St. Louis American |
| Editorial & Opinion -Robert S. Abbott Award | The Observer Newspapers |
| Editorial & Opinion -Robert S. Abbott Award | The Philadelphia Tribune |
| Category | winners |
| Community Service – Carl Murphy Award | Washington Informer |
| Community Service – Carl Murphy Award | The Observer Newspapers |
| Community Service – Carl Murphy Award | The New York Amsterdam News |
| Category | winners |
| Facebook Campaign Award | Atlanta Voice |
| Facebook Campaign Award | The New York Amsterdam News |
| Facebook Campaign Award | The Observer Newspapers |
| Category | winners |
| Instagram Campaign Award | Houston Forward Times |
| Instagram Campaign Award | New Pittsburg Courier |
| Instagram Campaign Award | The Observer Newspapers |
| Category | winners |
| Enviroment – Wilbert L Holloway | The Observer Newspapers |
| Enviroment – Wilbert L Holloway | The New York Amsterdam News |
| Enviroment – Wilbert L Holloway | Washington Informer |
| Category | winners |
| Sports – Don King Award | Houston Defender |
| Sports – Don King Award | New Pittsburg Courier |
| Sports – Don King Award | Seattle Medium |
| Category | winners |
| Entertainment – Armstrong Ellington Award | The New York Amsterdam News |
| Entertainment – Armstrong Ellington Award | The Observer Newspapers |
| Entertainment – Armstrong Ellington Award | Wave Community Newspapers |
| Category | winners |
| Newspaper Excellence – John H. Sengstacke Award | Houston Defender |
| Newspaper Excellence – John H. Sengstacke Award | Birmingham Times |
| Newspaper Excellence – John H. Sengstacke Award | The Observer Newspapers |
| Category | winners |
| Business Award | Michigan Chronicle |
| Business Award | The Observer Newspapers |
| Business Award | Wave Community Newspapers |
| Category | winners |
| Website Excellence – A.Philip Randolph Award | The Observer Newspapers |
| Website Excellence – A.Philip Randolph Award | Washington Informer |
| Website Excellence – A.Philip Randolph Award | Houston Forward Times |
| Category | winners |
| Original Advertising Campaign – E. Washington Rhodes Award | Afro American Newspaper (Baltimore) |
| Original Advertising Campaign – E. Washington Rhodes Award | Houston Defender |
| Original Advertising Campaign – E. Washington Rhodes Award | The Philadelphia Tribune |
| Newspaper Excellence Award |
| New Pittsburgh Courier full editions – Feb. 9, Feb. 16, Feb. 23 |
| Voter outreach rally kicks off on King Day |
| Houston Defender Layout – Tabloid |
| The Sacramento Observer |
| 8/25/2022 & 9/1/2022 |
| Election Central: The People Have Spoken |
| Summerfest, food and fun |
| School Shooting |
| Black women & Alopecia by ReShonda Tate | Black Maternity Crisis by Aswad Walker |
| Fashion, Beauty & Lifestyle |
| Lifestyle |
| The Faces of Atlanta Medical Center *series* |
| Our Birth Stories |
| No Way Out? Black male suicides by ReShonda Tate |
| Seattle Medium Juneteenth Edition |
| Black History Month: The making of Jackie Robinson (75th anniversary) |
| A Culture Of Care: Black Nurses Special Edition |
| Faith and Religion stories |
| Sharon Baptist Church: Celebrating 40 pastoral years together |
| Church at the Crossroads: Waning attendance stifling churches |
| Maranathan Academy Still Serves Critical Need |
| Black Families choosing homeschooling |
| Group Challenges Colleges to Better Accommodate Student Parents |
| REACTION: Herschel Walker vs Senator Raphael Warnock square off in only Debate |
| 10 Year Aniversary |
| The Sacramento Observer |
| AFRO Layout & Design July 8 & 15, 2022 |
| Layout & Design Broadsheet |
| Voter outreach rally kicks off on King Day |
| Houston Defender “State of Black Women” The Power of Our Vote |
| 35th Annual Salute to Excellence in Education Multi-Media Coverage: |
| Community Engagement |
| Dynamite Dance Factory epitomizes owner Kyri Hayes vision for youth dance |
| Gen Z & Voting: How young people could shape elections |
| Black Cosplayers are Creating Their Own World in the Cosplay Community |
| Hell on earth in Alabama |
| The Kevin Johnson story – In search of humanity |
| STOP THE BLOODSHED: Community demands, ‘Keep the bullets in the chamber’ |
| Coming together as community in wake of tragedy |
| Reparations |
| Mayor: Lead or leave |
| Our House – Keeping Homes Black Owned in the DMV |
| The Sacramento Observer – Grand Jury |
| Blacklight Fact Checks |
| Ethnic Media Collaboration conversation w/ Senator Rev. Raphael Warnock |
| Beyond the Barrel of the Gun |
| The Sacramento Observer |
| Worth the Weight |
| New Pittsburgh Courier’s Instagram page keeps Black Pittsburgh informed |
| The Sacramento Observer |
| Heatwave |
| Climate goals, climate justice: Who gets left behind? |
| Many School Uniforms Contain Potentially Toxic ‘Forever Chemicals’: Study |
| Sports: March 10 & 17 – Deion Sanders impact – Terrance Harris | Jodie B. Jiles |
| New Pittsburgh Courier sports sections, Sept. 21 and Sept. 28 |
| The Grid – Seattle Medium Youth Football Coverage |
| Seun Kuti rocks Sony Hall |
| The Sacramento Observer |
| Local entertainment coverage |
| Houston Defender – Oct 13, 20, 27 |
| General Excellence |
| The Sacramento Observer |
| Banking on Detroit’s African American Communities_Donald James |
| Black Women Businesses |
| ‘Tyler Perry like’ studios to provide economic boom for L.A. |
| The Sacramento Observer |
| www.washingtoninformer.com |
| Digital Excellence |
| 130th Anniversary Gala Advertising Campaign |
| Houston Defender SMART MARKETING EVENTS |
| Our Community. Our Health |
