The Vilas County News-Review earned 11 awards in this year’s Wisconsin Newspaper Association (WNA) Better Newspaper Contest, including first place spots for writing, photo use, and spot news in both advertising and editorial categories.

On the editorial side, the biggest honor was staff’s first place All Around Newspaper Photography win. Judges congratulated the News-Review on using “good local art” for covers, adding that, “If cropping was done, it is not apparent or distracting. Pictures are presented in a way that makes it clear what the most important elements on the page are.”

Staff also was awarded third place for General Excellence in its division the state, which is a high honor.

“Your newspaper brings a strong focus to the communities you serve. Solid writing skills and photography, appealing page layout and ads, and overall a great example of local journalism!” the judges said of the Vilas County News-Review.

The News-Review also placed third in Best Front Page for its “solid pages and good use of photos,” and Best Opinion Section.

In individual wins, Editor Michelle Drew earned a first place award for Enterprise/Interpretive Reporting for a story on Vilas County’s housing costs.

According to the judge’s comments, “This piece has strong reporting and uses data to show both useful and validating information on housing costs and income mismatches. It puts local hurdles in context through comparison and analytical conclusions. It is done in a readable format making it flow without feeling like the reporter is simply spouting out numbers.”

Former Publisher Kurt Krueger also won a first place plaque for his Spot News Photo of the fire at Earth Products, with judges saying the photo had “good action and composition.”

Second place nods were given to Lifestyle Editor Christina Brandmeier for Best Photo Essay of last year’s Phelps Maple Syrup Fest. “Proof that a good photo essay needn’t be several photos!” judges said. “Someone did a good job of selecting the ones that matter and gave the reader a variety of sizes to make it attractive. Well done.”

Drew also earned second place for Environmental Reporting.

Krueger notched a third place win for his Local Outdoors Column. Judges said, “Reading your columns makes me excited for retirement. I especially liked the story about tip-up fishing and there’s nothing like watching that flag fly and see the spool spinning!”

On the advertising side, staff was top dog for Best Use of Local Photography for its Derby Thank-You ad.

“Very nice use of a variety of photos in a visually pleasing layout. Especially like the emphasis on photos over words in the layout,” judges said. “The top, high-angle photo is especially nice. And the use of color throughout is really well done.”

For Best Multiple Advertiser Layout, sales staff won based on their “really solid design,” with judges adding there was “lots of small touches to add information and aid in navigation.”

According to WNA, the 2025 contest received 2,493 entries from 103 newspapers. Eligible entries were published between Sept. 1, 2024, and Aug. 31, 2025, and were judged by members of the Colorado Press Association. The Vilas County News-Review competes in Division C, which is for papers with non-daily circulation of at least 4,500.

“The Better Newspaper Contest is fun because you get to see how you stack up against other journalists, photographers, reporters and staff all across the state,” Drew said. “We have always been a relatively small staff that has been able to accomplish big things. Although I wasn’t leading the charge for much of this competition cycle, I’m proud of what we were able to achieve this year, and I’m looking forward to next year’s competition when we can really show them what we’ve got here at the News-Review!”

Staff behind the wins

“Local journalism plays a vital role in democracy, accountability, and community life,” said Scott Peterson, president of the WNA Foundation. “It is demanding work, but it is meaningful work.”

The News-Review’s editorial staff consists of Drew, Brandmeier and Sports Editor Jacob Heid. There is also a rotating cast of contributing writers and photographers that help cover events, write up features, provide game coverage, and generally fill in the gaps.

“Our coverage area is large, and we have always relied on our contributors to help us report on as many happenings as we can,” Drew said. “I’m thankful to have former Editor Gary Ridderbusch, and former Publisher and Editor Kurt Krueger still on board to share their writing and photography chops with us.

Longtime local newsman Chris Oatman fills out the roster helping with sports, while Bob Hughes, Sharon Gifford, Jacki Hildebrandt, Rachel Wood and Felicia Szott help keep our town coverage going strong.

On the production side of things, Kimberly Byrne is responsible for assembling the jigsaw puzzle of Section B each week, while Sue Schroeder builds the front page, News and Sports sections.

The News-Review’s sales team, Kathy Paul, Jason Bramstadt, and Bri Rivest, assist local businesses with their advertising needs, and Mike Hollihan helms the ship as general manager.

“We are happy we won 11 awards at this year’s WNA contest, and I want to offer up a big thank-you to our editorial, sales and production staff who put in so much effort every day to make this possible,” Hollihan said. “As our editor Michelle Drew said, she wasn’t leading the charge, but with her at the helm, plus the rest of our rock-solid team in place, I have no doubt we are going to do even better next year.”