L.A. Times Earns 11 Honors from the Society for Features Journalism
The Los Angeles Times has received 11 honors in the Society for Features Journalism’s Excellence-in-Features contest, including second place in the Division 3 sweepstakes category which recognizes the organizations with the most awards in the other 22 categories.
In all, The Times won three first-place, five second-place and two third-place awards, as well as one honorable mention in the Division 3 category (circulation 200,000 and up; digital-only organization).
Among the first-place honors, Times Staff Writer Daniel Miller won in the food feature category for his piece, How two friends sparked L.A.’s sushi obsession — and changed the way America eats. “The story deftly weaves together a compelling personal story with the history of how sushi came to America,” commented the judges. “A subtle tour de force.”
Additionally, Times Restaurant Critic Bill Addison won first place in the food criticism category for his review of Villa’s Tacos. The judges commented, “This Bill Addison piece does everything a great review aspires to do. A mix of deep background, an infusion of light and oxygen to breathe big life into a smaller restaurant concept and tasting notes that transcend the esoteric and give us a real sense of knife, fork, table and taste.”
Finally, Times Food Editor Daniel Hernandez received a first-place honor in the features beat specialty writing portfolio category for a series of stories about Mexico City. The judges praised the stories, writing, “Take Daniel Hernandez’s three stories with you when you visit Mexico City. All offer insight and expertise in an engaging way — delightfully written, vivid and detailed. The sights, smells and sounds echo through each paragraph. The interactive restaurant map is particularly helpful.”
Here’s the complete list of honorees from The Times:
Finest in Features Sweepstakes
Second place: Los Angeles Times
General Feature
Third place: Vanessa Arredondo, San Francisco and L.A. failed to reduce pedestrian deaths. One girl’s killing shows why
Arts & Entertainment Feature
Third place: Max Kim, Netflix turns to South Korean writers and crews as Hollywood strikes. But they feel exploited too
Food Feature
First place: Daniel Miller, How two friends sparked L.A.’s sushi obsession – and changed the way America eats
Food Criticism
First place: Bill Addison, Villa’s Tacos is the essential taqueria that only L.A. could dream up
Feature Series or Project
Second place: August Brown, Stacy Perman and Kenan Draughorne, Behind the calamitous fall of hip-hop mogul Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs
Features Beat Specialty Writing Portfolio
First place: Daniel Hernandez, Guide to Mexico City series
Second place: Hailey Branson-Potts, Learning in Peril series
Arts & Culture Criticism Portfolio
Second place: Carolina Miranda
Honorable mention: Todd Martens
Podcast - Recurring Series
Second Place: Los Angeles Times staff, “Foretold” episode 1, The ‘G-word’: The slur you didn’t know was a slur
To learn more about the awards and see the full list of winners, visit featuresjournalism.org.
