Staff reports
The Opelika Observer received several honors in the 2015 Alabama Press Association Better Newspaper Contest. The Observer brought home three first place awards and two third place awards in Division D. Division D includes weekly newspapers with less than 5,000 circulation.
The Observer received first place awards in the following categories: Most Improved Newspaper, Best Newspaper Website and Best Business Story/Column. The newspaper also received third place awards in the Best Business Story/Column and Best Headline categories.
The awards were announced at last Saturday’s awards banquet ending the annual summer convention held in Destin, Fla. Observer editor Fred Woods said, “It’s always nice to have your work recognized by your peers. These awards, especially the first two, reflect the good efforts of our entire staff. I would also express appreciation to Laura Leigh Chesser, who “remodeled” our website early last year.”
Woods also thanked the Observer subscribers for their constant encouragement to the staff for their efforts in producing Opelika’s local newspaper.