Reporter Racks Up Honors.

On April 27 The Chicago Reporter won two Peter Lisagor Awards for Exemplary Journalism from the Chicago Headline Club, the local chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. Jim McGowan, the Reporter's longtime graphic designer, won in the magazine/newsletter category for his work on the layout of the 2000 series, "Chicago Matters: Seeking Justice." Reporters Rui Kaneya and Pamela A. Lewis received honors for public service, online, for their Web site report, "Transit Woes: The CTA's Aging Bus Fleet," published last October.

And on May 19 the Illinois Woman's Press Association gave Managing Editor Alysia Tate and freelance writer Sarah Karp first place awards in the 2001 Mate E. Palmer Communications Contest. Tate was honored for her government and politics coverage in 2000, and Karp for her May 2000 article, "State Drug Law Hits City Teens, Minorities."

On May 10 the Reporter also received two Meritorious Achievement Awards for exemplary reporting on legal affairs and justice issues in the Chicago Bar Association's Herman Kogan Media Awards competition. Reporter Alden K. Loury, along with contributions from freelance writer Mick Dumke and Research Assistant Stephanie Williams, were named for the April 2000 report, "Fighting the Odds." Karp and Edie Rubinowitz, who reported and produced an accompanying documentary for WBEZ 91.5 FM Chicago Public Radio, won for "State Drug Law Hits City Teens, Minorities."

Finally, in April, WBEZ's report, "1000 Feet," the radio version of the drug law investigation, won the Radio-Television News Directors Association's Edward R. Murrow Award for excellence in electronic journalism. The contest covered a four-state region that includes Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio.