The Call News won 12 awards, including five first places, in the Alabama Press Association’s 2026 Better Newspapers competition.
The honors in Division C recognized excellence in photography, design and layout, sports coverage and editorial commentary.
Editor Jimmy Wigfield won six of the awards, including three firsts. Those included the Best Local Sports Column for the third straight year for his tribute to longtime UMS-Wright football coach Terry Curtis upon his retirement, first in Best Sports News In-Depth Coverage for his story on the death of Leroy softball coach Tabitha Baggett and its impact on the community and first for Best Sports Feature Story for his article about locally owned horse Coal Battle running in the 2025 Kentucky Derby.
Willie Gray won for the Best Spot News Photo for capturing the aftermath of a vehicle crashing into a Citronelle church and igniting a fire that destroyed the building.
Layout editor Doug Dimitry received a first-place award for headline writing for “No Dice on Gaming,” which accompanied an article about the failure of gaming legislation in the Alabama Legislature.
Wigfield earned two second places in Best Sports News In-Depth Coverage for his article on Jackson star running back E.J. Crowell and in Best Sports Single Event Story for his coverage of Saraland High School’s runner-up finish in the Class 6A football championship game.
Wigfield won two of the top three Best Local Sports Column awards, getting third for “What the ELL is Going On?” an opinion piece on a state legislator who didn’t want English Language Learner students counted for classification purposes in athletics.
The Call News also won third place for Best Production and Printing and Best Layout and Design. Columnist Jeff Poor earned third place for his commentary, “The Alabama Prison Mess” while photographer Helen Joyce also received third place in the Best Feature Photo category for “The Miracle of a Child’s Smile,” which highlighted coverage of Mobile’s Miracle Field baseball program.
The annual contest featured 1,727 entries from 51 publications. Entries were judged by the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association.
Additional awards will be announced during the 2026 Alabama Press Association Summer Convention in June.
