Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Competition Winners Announced

Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Competition Winners Announced

LAS VEGAS, Sept. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- The Boston Globe and National Geographic Adventure magazine are top winners in the 21st Annual Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Competition.

The Boston Globe won five awards, including the top Grand Award-Travel Journalist of the Year that went to reporter Tom Haines. The Washington Post took four awards. Three went to the Toronto Globe & Mail, and three to the Seattle Times.

Among magazines, National Geographic Adventure won five awards, including best travel magazine in North America. Travel + Leisure won three awards.

The contest is operated by the Society of American Travel Writers (SATW) Foundation and judged by the faculty at the University of Missouri School of Journalism.

The competition for work in 2004-05 drew 1,385 entries in 27 categories. The awards, recognized as the most prestigious honors in travel journalism, were announced in Las Vegas at the annual convention of SATW, the professional organization of travel journalists and communicators.

As Travel Journalist of the Year, Haines will receive $1,500 with his gold award for accounts from remote regions of Cambodia, Russia, Venezuela and the Sudan. Silver award went to Peter Jon Lindberg of Travel + Leisure magazine. Bronze went to John Flinn of the San Francisco Chronicle. Haines also won an award for personal commentary.

Total prize money for individual winners this year is nearly $19,000.

The Los Angeles Times won the gold for best Newspaper Travel Section among publications with 500,000 or more circulation. Gold winners in other circulation categories were The Baltimore Sun, the New Orleans Times-Picayune and the Santa Barbara News-Press. Other award winning newspaper travel sections included the Chicago Tribune, the Portland Oregonian, the San Jose Mercury News, the Los Angeles Daily News and the Contra Costa Times in California.

AARP The Magazine took top honors in the category for travel coverage in magazines that generally focus on non-travel topics.

The gold winner in Internet travel publication/Web site was Wildwritingwomen.com. "Outside's Wilderness Lodge Vacations" by Kimberly Lisagor was judged best guidebook, and "Chocolate: A Bittersweet Saga of Dark and Light" by Mort Rosenblum was named best travel book.

The awards are named for the late Lowell Thomas, acclaimed broadcast journalist, prolific author and world explorer who achieved numerous "firsts" during five decades in travel journalism.

For more information about the competition, contact David Molyneaux, SATW Foundation president at (216) 999-4560 or satwf@aol.com.

For information about SATW, contact the organization headquarters, (919) 861-5586 or visit http://www.satw.org/ . Information about the Lowell Thomas competition and winners also is posted at http://www.satw.org/ .

Source: Society of American Travel Writers Foundation

CONTACT: David Molyneaux, Travel Editor, The Plain Dealer, for SATW Foundation, +1-216-999-4560, DMolyneaux@plaind.com

Web site: http://www.satw.org/

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