Times named one of state’s best

One of the top awards given to Minnesota newspapers has found a home in Steele County.
Last week, The Steele County Times captured first place in general excellence in the Minnesota Newspaper Association's annual Better Newspaper Contest. It is the first time the Times has won first place in General Excellence.
There have been a few occasions since 2011 that the Times has won either second or third place for general excellence.
General Excellence is considered one of the most prestigious categories in the state contest. In awarding the honor, judges consider depth, breadth and quality of news coverage, quality of advertising, quality of the editorial page, quality of photography and overall appearance of the newspaper.
For most categories, there are five circulation groups for weekly newspapers. The Times competes in the 1,500 to 3,000-circulation category. In awarding first place in General Excellence, the judges said: "Love the local editorial. Good mix of news and feature stories and strong advertising… good sports section. Nice work."
The Times earned seven other first-place awards. They included: sports reporting, special section, hard news story, sports feature story, best advertisement, best columnist and portrait, and personality photo.
For sports reporting, the judges said: "Great coverage of all sports. Clean layout and great pictures."
The newspaper captured first place for its special section on the Steele County Free Fair, showcasing the event afterward. In awarding first place, the judges said: "Most fair sections are in advance of the event. I found this a refreshing approach to a section that many newspapers publish. Content and layout was fantastic."
Publisher Rick Bussler was awarded first place for best columnist. Judges said: "Rick Bussler has a light, humorous touch when writing about how his mom got a black eye (for her 82nd birthday). In a separate column, he discusses a cornucopia of county fair food created at home after COVID-19 forced cancellation of the real thing. He also details the woes of delivering the newspaper when the U.S. Postal Service drags its feet and doesn't offer any help or answers. Any publisher can identify with this."
Bussler received first place for a sports feature story he wrote on the miracle police officer from Waseca who was shot and visited an athlete/friend during a Medford football game. Judges said: "Writer did a nice job of sprinkling in quotes. The story flowed well and was focused."
A photo taken by Bussler at the Steele County Fair of a young child nestled up next to her cow earned first place in the portrait and personality photo competition. Judges said: "Very nice image. Farm kids' relationship with their animals. Excellent."
An advertisement for B to Z Hardware featuring a photo of Cousin Eddie and the store's Christmas display earned first place for best advertisement. The judges made no comments.
The Times also earned first place for hard news capturing the $1 million donation by the Kruckeberg family of Blooming Prairie and the subsequent formation of the Leo Augusta Children's Academy. The judges did not offer any comments.
Second place honors went to the Times for local breaking news coverage of Brian Seykora's dairy operation going up in flames and headline writing.
The newspaper also picked up third place awards for editorial page as a whole and news photo.
"Awards are a nice affirmation of the hard work and dedication we put forth each and every week to producing a quality newspaper," said Bussler. "We are always striving for high journalistic quality and these awards are a testament that we are succeeding."
Since 2012 when the newspaper began competing in the state contest, the Times has achieved 79 state awards. In addition, the Times has also won 26 national awards for journalistic excellence.