LOWELL THOMAS TRAVEL JOURNALISM COMPETITION
27 Years of Rewarding Journalists for Outstanding Work in the Field
2011 Press Release
SATW Foundation Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Competition |
For release 11/10/11
Media contact: Mary Lu Abbott
MaryLuA@satwf.com
@SATWFoundation
RICK STEVES, BUDGET TRAVEL MAGAZINE WIN TOP
SATW FOUNDATION LOWELL THOMAS CONTEST HONORS
WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Rick Steves, one of America’s best-known travelers as a guidebook writer, blogger, social media personality and TV/radio host, is the Journalist of the Year in the 2011 Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Competition.
Arthur Frommer’s Budget Travel magazine, the Los Angeles Times and the San Francisco Chronicle win top honors as the best travel publications in North America.
National Geographic Traveler wins five awards, including best travel website and best cultural tourism article. Outside magazine also wins five awards, including best adventure travel and best investigative stories.
In naming Steves as Travel Journalist of the Year for his portfolio of work in the Grand Award category, the judges said: “The strength of Steves’ writing is his embrace of diversity, the range of topics and everyday candor.” He also wins gold awards for his popular travel blog and for his radio broadcasts. Said the judges: “Steves’ behind-the-scenes videos and his political commentary give us a real sense of the people and places he experiences.”
Silver Grand Award winner is Andrew McCarthy, actor and writer, who won the gold in this category in 2010. Winning bronze is freelance writer Kate Siber.
Other top magazine winners, for their publications, writers and photographers, are Afar, Southern Living, Westways, Islands, Playboy, The Rotarian, Via, Virtuoso Life, Canadian Geographic and Explore.
Newspaper winners, for travel sections, articles and photography, include the Washington Post, Dallas Morning News, USA Today, Orange County Register, Portland Oregonian, Minneapolis Star Tribune, New York Times and the Record of Hackensack, NJ.
Best travel video winner is “Richard Bangs’ Adventures with Purpose/Hong Kong” as seen on American Public Television. Winner of the best consumer-oriented article is Dan Askin at CruiseCritic.com, who investigated the ads for a “free” cruise.
“I was struck by the quality of the entries,” said judge Val Lauder, who has taught feature writing at North Carolina for 31 years. She said the winning entry in the foreign travel article category — Peter Gwin’s story from Timbuktu in National Geographic – was “haunting.”
Winning travel websites and their journalists include MatadorNetwork.com, BudgetTravel.com, MeetingsFocus.com, Gadling.com and Geoex.com. Top blogs include blog.bradajohnson.net by food and travel journalist Brad A. Johnson and Today in the Sky by Ben Mutzabaugh at USAToday.com.
Winning best travel book is “Bonobo Handshake: A Memoir of Love and Adventure in the Congo” by Vanessa Woods for Gotham Books. Gold winner for guidebook is “USA’s Best Trips: 99 Themed Itineraries Across America” from Lonely Planet, Sara Benson, coordinating author.
The awards are named for Lowell Thomas, acclaimed broadcast journalist, prolific author and world explorer during five decades in travel journalism. The competition is open to all North American journalists.
The SATW Foundation distributes nearly $20,000 to individual winners. “We want to thank this year’s underwriters — the Tourist Office for Flanders - Brussels and Travel Guard — for their support in recognizing and rewarding excellence in travel journalism,” said David Molyneaux, SATW Foundation president. “Their generosity helps make our prizes possible.”