Congratulations to Christopher White Walker, Editor and Publisher of the Emporia Gazette, and Ashley Knecht Walker, Editor of the Emporia Gazette, and their staff for an outstanding showing in the 2022 Kansas Press Association’s Awards of Excellence.
According to the April twenty-sixth story, the paper won 11 Awards of Excellence including 3 first-place awards for Best Front Page design; Best Feature Story and Best Magazine.
Chris Walker said “We are proud of our staff here at the paper. They work very hard day in and day out…”They certainly deserve it.”
The article said, “In the changing times of the newspaper industry, awards such as these are especially meaningful.”
Walker then concluded, “We are one of the few last independent papers in the state, and while we may not have all the resources that some of the big corporate-owned papers do, it’s nice to see that we are able to out-perform them on so many levels.”
I think the Emporia area is lucky to have the Walkers leading the local newspaper during these times of challenge for print journalism.
While I don’t think I’ll ever get over missing the joy of searching for my evening Gazette in the bushes – seriously I am impressed with the ways in which Ashley and Chris have addressed their situation.
The creativity the Gazette staff employs in finding and presenting their lead stories is excellent and was rewarded by the KPA. Their staff has the knack for being relevant.
Their efforts in successfully publishing magazines like Sallie and Emporia Living demonstrate their willingness to take on a challenge. Having been a party to attempting to publish a local magazine a few years ago I appreciate how hard it can be.
And finally adding the local papers from Madison and Chase County to my Saturday Gazette is a nice extra. Having spent my first 13 years in Gridley I remember fondly some of the small town lore coming from a weekly paper.
The Walkers have turned a difficult situation into a thriving operation that I am sure is the envy of others in the fourth estate. Their readers are lucky they have embraced the challenge.
I’m Steve Sauder
