SUN.STAR Davao pulled away with yet two more awards this year in the 2009 Philippine Press Institute-The Coca-Cola Export Company Civic Journalism Community Press Awards held last June 24 at The Diamond Hotel in Manila, winning the Best in Environmental and Science Reporting for the daily category and The Best Edited for its Sun.Star Weekend edition.
By garnering these coveted awards, Sun.Star Davao staked its claim in being the community newspaper that gives major importance to environmental and science development issues, two concerns that concern the world at large, but which community dailies do not give much focus for various reasons.
Even as it won the Best Edited Weekly, Weekend's citation as such took note of the newspaper's penchant for covering environmental issues, describing the weekend edition as "the hands-down environmental champion."
"But this is not a contest for the greenest community newspaper. This one is for best editing, and best editing includes copy, heads, and photos. Well-edited, great layout, and stunning graphics, consistent use of fonts give it a unique signature," the citation reads.
Thus, grabbing the Best in Science and Environment Reportage award for its daily edition is but a confirmation of this.
"Sun.Star Davao's year-round science and environment reportage through its regular section enabled it to convey to its readers the importance of science and the environment in their daily lives," the citation reads. "The newspaper linked science with gut concerns such as food secutiry, environment and health. It reported on timely global concerns such as climate change and wrote about activities of local inventors, thus, the Sun.Star Davao presented both global and local perspectives."
In many of the categories, it was a contest among Sun.Star newspapers although the eventual winners aside from Sun.Star Davao are:
Daily category: Best in Business and Economic Reporting, Sun.Star Cebu; Best in Photojournalism, The Freeman and Sun.Star Cagayan de Oro; Best Editorial Page, Cebu Daily News, and; Best Edited Community Newspaper, Cebu Daily News.
Weekly category: Best in Business and Economic Reporting, Best in Science and Environment Reporting, and Best Editorial Page - Baguio Midland Courier.
There to attend the awards night for Sun.Star Davao were its editor in chief Stella A. Estremera and general manager Tessie A. Paña.
It was a simple award ceremony attended by community newspaper editors and publishers from all over the country aside from special guests Court Administrator and spokesperson of the Supreme Court Jose Midas P. Marquez, Guillermo Aponte, president and general manager of Coca-Cola Far East Ltd., Philippine Press Institute chair Isagani Yambot, Asian Institute of Journalism and Communication president Ramon R. Tuazon, and The Coca-Cola Export Corporation vice president for corporation affairs Jose Bayani D. Baylon.