NNA to honor distinguished community leaders with 2021 McKinney, Amos awards
Jul 7, 2021
PENSACOLA, Florida — Recognized as the highest and most dignified tributes in community journalism, the Amos and McKinney awards are presented to a working or retired newspaperman and woman who have provided distinguished service and leadership to the community press and their community.
Connie Wagner of Sibley, Iowa, and Larry Atkinson of Mobridge, South Dakota, will be honored during the National Newspaper Association Foundation’s 135th Annual Convention & Trade Show in Jacksonville, Florida, where they will be presented with the Emma C. McKinney Award and James O. Amos Award, respectively, at the association’s business breakfast on Oct. 2, 2021.
Wagner will be the 52nd recipient of the McKinney Award. She began her media career at WNAX 5-State Radio in Sibley. While there, she met and eventually married her husband Peter W. Wagner. In 1962, Connie and Peter founded their first publication, The Golden Shopper. In 1972, Connie, now the mother of two sons, joined Peter in founding the N’West Iowa REVIEW. Over the past 40-plus years, The REVIEW has won over 250 Iowa Press Association and National Newspaper Association awards of journalism excellence including Best Newspaper in Iowa (weekly or daily) 17 times and NNA General Excellence in its class at least 20 times.
Matthew Paxton, NNA past president and publisher of The News-Gazette in Lexington, Virginia, wrote: “Connie Wagner exemplifies the qualities and characteristics of the best community journalists, male or female. Her community involvement, her leadership in the family business and her involvement with NNA make her qualified to be NNA’s 2021 McKinney Award Winner.”
Wagner served three four-year terms as a member of the Northwest Iowa Community College (NCC) Foundation Board of Trustees. As a board member, she helped to organize fundraisers and has held more than one special event in her home. She provides leadership on committees and assists with Foundation fund-raising activities. Her creativity and hard work have greatly enhanced Foundation’s efforts to support the students of NCC.
According to NCC President Dr. Alethea Stubbe, “NCC is honored that Connie Wagner puts so much of her time and effort into supporting our students, and our college. We have all benefited from her creativity and her generosity.”
On the national level, Connie has served on various NNA program and NNA Foundation committees. Until the time of her son Jay’s death from cancer, she was an annual participant at the convention, Washington gathering and numerous board meetings. She has attended close to 200 state association and group conventions and meetings with her husband Peter.
But perhaps Connie’s greatest gift to journalism has been her over 1,500 weekly columns published in The N’West Iowa REVIEW. Sometimes about the family, sometimes about area events and other about subscribers and others she had come to know, the columns were reflective, sometimes humorous, sometimes emotional (like the months she wrote about Jay’s slow death), and always straight from the heart.
Peter said about his wife and partner, “Connie’s columns always end with the words ‘God is good.’ Many times, the two of us have been approached at a meeting or restaurant by a total stranger who, smiling, simply says ‘God is good,’ before thanking her for her words of faith and walking off without another word. To me, Connie is a great example of the type of woman who has made community great and who is needed to continue to make it great in the future. Without her, there would never have been a N’West Iowa REVIEW, Iowa Information Media Group or White Wolf Web Regional Printers.”
The McKinney Award was established in 1966 to honor Emma C. McKinney, co-publisher and editor of the Hillsboro (Oregon) Argus for 58 years. She was dean of Oregon newspapermen and women in 1954 and was inducted into the Oregon Journalism Hall of Fame in 1982.
Atkinson, retired publisher and former owner of the Mobridge (South Dakota) Tribune, will be the 80th recipient of the James O. Amos Award.
Atkinson received a journalism degree from South Dakota State University in 1973 and a master’s degree from Ball State University in 1978. Following service in the United States Air Force, Larry returned to his hometown as editor of the Pollock (South Dakota) Prairie Pioneer. His achievements at the Pollock newspaper were noticed by Gene Chamberlin of the Mobridge Tribune, who offered Larry a chance to buy into his operation in the early 1980s. Larry later became owner, editor and publisher of the Tribune. In 2007, he and his wife Roberta purchased the Potter County News in Gettysburg and West River Eagle in Eagle Butte. In March 2019, the Atkinsons sold their newspapers to complete Larry’s 40-year span as one of South Dakota’s all-time great newspaper publishers.
In his nomination letter, Brian Hunhoff, editor of The Yankton (South Dakota) County Observer, wrote, “Larry leads by example, giving back in a big way to his community, his state and his profession. In Mobridge, he has been a member and a leader in efforts as diverse as rodeo, economic development, arts, tourism, retail merchants and the community fund.”
Atkinson served as president of South Dakota Newspaper Association during 1999-2000. His leadership created foundational building blocks for SDNA. For instance, during his term as president of SDNA, he appointed a committee that led to an annual workshop to promote journalism as a possible education and career path for Native American students. During the 12 years this annual workshop was held at Crazy Horse Memorial in the Black Hills, more than 1,000 students were engaged in learning about journalism and being inspired about its possibilities. Atkinson was hands-on throughout the time of this conference, serving as professional mentor during the event and working hard to promote it and find the funds to support it each year.
While SDNA president, Atkinson also led the effort to create a display advertising network for SDNA. This ad network has proven very successful over the years and is integral to the association’s strength and long-term financial viability.
“More importantly, however, has been Larry’s generous and unceasing support for newspapers in South Dakota and for newspaper colleagues across our state,” David Bordewyk, executive director of the South Dakota Newspaper Association, said. “His guidance, advice and enthusiasm has been a shining light in our state. He has always been readily available to support and counsel anyone who seeks his advice and opinions. His passion for newspapers and for journalism is equaled by his giving of time and talents to the profession.”
NNA Past President and Director of Creative Resources Robert M Williams Jr. noted that his nomination mapped the extraordinary career of an exemplary newspaperman with “many years of unselfish service and generous spirit.”
The Amos Award was established in 1938 in honor of Gen. James O. Amos, a pioneer Ohio journalist and member of the National Editorial Association — now known as the National Newspaper Association.
Past and present Amos Award winners are listed here.
Established in 1885, the National Newspaper Association is the voice of America’s community newspapers and the largest newspaper association in the country. The nation’s community papers inform, educate and entertain nearly 150 million readers every week.