The English and Spanish newspaper, which focuses on covering Latinx and diverse communities at HSU and Humboldt County, took first-place awards for Best Photo Series, Best Feature Photograph, Best Feature, Best Illustration, Best Website, and Best Inside Spread/Page Design.
“I can’t be more proud of our El Leñador staff,” said Editor-in-Chief Jose Herrera. “The awards are a sign that we are doing incredible work covering the community.”
El Leñador staff also took second-place for best sports photograph and third-place for best special issue; plus honorable mentions for best news series, arts and entertainment story, newspaper front page design, and podcast.
“These awards are a testament to the appreciation and value of news that is diverse and inclusive,” said HSU Journalism & Mass Communication instructor Andrea Juarez, faculty adviser to the student staff. “El Leñador staff are passionate about producing news that is impactful and matters.”
About El Leñador
El Leñador was founded in 2013 and is published monthly during the spring and fall semesters and online at ellenadornews.com. The print edition is distributed on campus and locations around Humboldt County, including Arcata, Eureka, Fortuna, McKinleyville and Trinidad. In 2016, El Leñador was named Best Non-weekly Newspaper by the California College Media Association in 2016.
The full list of 2019 CCMA awardees includes
First Place (universities with fewer than 10K students)
— Best Photo Series – Jose Herrera – Wiyot Days
— Best Feature Photograph – Emilyo Arias – Straight from the Queen
— Best Feature – Héctor Arzate – A Hair(cut) Above the Rest
— Best Illustration – Mikaylah Rivas – Solidarity with My People
— Best Website – Meg Bezak, Cassaundra Caudillo, Héctor Arzate, Katherine Miron
— Best Inside Spread/Page Design – Mikaylah Rivas – December 2018
Other Awards (universities with fewer than 10K students)
— Second Place, Sports Photograph (Wiyot Days Stick Fighting) – Jose Herrera
— Third Place, Special Issue (La Leñadora) – Héctor Arzate, Katherine Miron, Meg Bezak, Mikaylah Rivas, Monica Ramirez, Iridian Casarez
— Honorable Mention, News Series (Sanctuary Status for Humboldt County) – Meg Bezak and Jose Herrera
— Honorable Mention, Arts and Entertainment Story (Iconic Ink) – Cassaundra Caudillo
— Honorable Mention, Newspaper Front Page Design (November issue) – Mikaylah Rivas, Emilyo Arias
— Honorable Mention, Podcast (El Salvador) – Damian Jimenez, Jose Herrera, Héctor Arzate, Meg Bezak