The Jessamine Journal named best newspaper in state in its class

Moore also won third place for best investigative story or series for a story that detailed Nicholasville crime rates.

“The community needs to have a story like this,” he said. “We really broke it down to statistics.”

Former staff writer Ben Rossi won second place for best feature story.

The “General Excellence” win is a great accomplishment for the paper, Moore said.

“There is a ton of talent in this state,” he said. “To be recognized is unbelievable.”

The Journal has finished in the top three each year since Moore took the reins as editor in 2005, including the most recent win, with two first-place wins, four second places and two third places.

“I honestly expected to be in the top three in the state,” Moore said. “We should expect that of ourselves. But, am I surprised? Yes, simply because of all the talent out there. There are a lot of talented newspapers.”

He said the class the Journal is in, Class 3 Weekly, is one of the more competitive categories, so winning means a lot.

Stark agreed that it’s nice to be recognized.

“It’s nice, because it’s one thing to hear somebody say, ‘That’s a nice story’ or a nice picture or whatever, but it’s another thing to be recognized when judged against your peers,” he said.

Kleppinger said the wide range of awards won says a lot about the paper.

“I’m proud that our awards are across the board, with some in design, some in writing, and some in photography,” he said. “That shows the breadth of our skills.”

Still, the goal of the paper isn’t to win awards, Moore said.

“It’s about serving the community,” he said. “Without the community, we wouldn’t be here to win awards.”