The New York Amsterdam News was once again recognized by its peers, this time by the New York Press Association. The AmNews snagged four honors including Writer of the Year for former Blacklight Science Reporter Helina Selemon. Other awards include first place in Division 1 for Coverage of Crime/Courts/Police/ for Report for America corps member Tandy Lau; a third place award for Coverage of the Environment for staffer Ariama C. Long and freelancer Roxanne Scott; and another third place award for Best News or Feature Series for Tandy Lau’s two-part series on challenging wrongful convictions.
“We are very excited that our journalism has been honored,” said AmNews publisher Elinor R. Tatum. “It is a testament to the hard work of our reporters, editors and freelancers.”
“These latest awards show that the work the Amsterdam News does is more necessary and vital than ever,” added AmNews President Siobhan Bennett. “We are continuing to build a new Harlem Renaissance as we look to keep growing and serving America’s largest Black and Brown community.
The New York Press Association awards are the latest in a string of honors including a 2024 NABJ, Solutions Journalism, Deadline Club awards. Publisher Tatum was also recognized by Editor & Publisher Magazine as their Publisher of the Year and Blacklight Report for America corps member Shannon Chaffer received the Martha Coman Front Page Award from the Newswomen’s Club of New York.
The newspaper’s plans to create a museum dedicated to the Black press was also highlighted in a recent New York Times article.
“The Amsterdam News has always been dedicated to providing opportunities for journalists of color and the creation of our Blacklight investigative unit is just one manifestation of that dedication. It is gratifying to me for Helina, Blacklight’s first reporter, to receive the Writer of the Year honor from the NYPA. The best is yet to come,” said Damaso Reyes, the AmNews’ Executive & Investigative Editor and founder of the Blacklight.