Ten of Club's

In Sarasota last Thursday the Florida Press Club presented its 1996 Excellence in Journalism Awards. New Times received a total of ten awards in the statewide competition.

New Times staff writers garnered the top three honors in Feature Writing: First place went to Sean Rowe for his stories "Our Garbage, Ourselves," "Bahama Trauma," and "If You Sink It, They Will Come"; second place was won by Elise Ackerman for "Cuba Bound," "You Can't Take It With You," and "Love and Cuba"; and third place was awarded to Judy Cantor for "Voice of Haiti," "Moments in Time," and "Home Truths."

Staff writer Jim DeFede won first place in Government Reporting for "In The Dead of the Night," "Very Big Bucks," and "Flying Blind." DeFede also took the top prize in Commentary Writing for "A Little Friendly Persuasion," "Friends (and Money) in High Places," and "Radio Marti: Ethics in Exile."

A first place in Environmental News Writing was awarded to staff writer Kirk Semple for his articles "A Whiter Shade of Green," "The Bloom That Vexes," and "Did You Sully That Gully?"

New Times staffers also swept the criticism category: Music editor John Floyd won first place for "The Siege of Nashville," "Dino: The Man, the Myth, the Musician," and "Favorite Thing"; second place went to Judy Cantor for art columns "Blurred Vision," "Art and Soul," and "A Consensus of One"; and third place was awarded to theater critic Pamela Gordon for "Oh What a Tangled Web," "Freudian Tip," and "Godot's Country."

In addition, the New Times editorial staff as a whole received a first place award for General Excellence in a Weekly Periodical.