News Photo by Justin A. Hinkley News Lifestyles Editor Darby Hinkley works at her desk on Thursday. Hinkley was one of several news staffers honored Thursday by the Michigan Press Association in the 2022 Better Newspaper Contest.

ALPENA — The Michigan Press Association on Thursday honored The Alpena News for its deep-dive reporting on drug problems in Northeast Michigan.

The News won third place in the Best News Enterprise Reporting category of the MPA’s 2022 Better Newspaper Contest for “A Community’s Disease,” a four-part series published in August 2021. The series reported on the serious issues Northeast Michigan faces in drug trafficking and addiction, explored the impacts of those issues on Northeast Michiganders, and profiled the people working to address those issues.

The award went to News Lifestyles Editor Darby Hinkley, News Staff Writer Steve Schulwitz, and former staff writers Julie Riddle and Crystal Nelson.

Read the series here.

The News also won:

∫ First place in Best Spot News Story for Riddle’s reporting on numerous cats rescued from a hoarder.

Read the story here.

∫ First place in Best Column for News Publisher/Editor Justin Hinkley’s opinion writing on the Commentary pages of The News.

∫ Third place in Best Column for former News page designer Alyssa Ochss’ opinion writing on the Lifestyles page.

“I am thrilled and so proud of the newsroom team here at The News,” Justin Hinkley said. “Enterprise reporting is some of the most important work we do. That kind of deep-dive reporting provides readers the important context behind the biggest issues facing our community, and it’s something newspapers — and The News team, in particular — do better than anyone else.”

“Every day, we work so hard to bring our readers the news about what’s really important in the community,” News Assistant Managing Editor James Andersen said. “It’s always nice to see that hard work recognized by others, and it reminds us that our work matters and makes an impact. It motivates our staff to keep working hard to continue telling important, interesting, and relevant stories.”

The awards mark a “rare moment in our profession where we allow ourselves to reflect and experience something akin to satisfaction for a job well done,” Wes Smith, MPA president and group publisher of View Newspaper Group, said in a statement. “Anyone in this business today is in it not for kudos but because of a passion and desire to serve our readers, our advertisers, and our communities. For us, the work is the reward.”

The MPA’s Better Newspaper Contest was judged by fellow journalists from the Colorado Press Association. They reviewed 2,866 entries from 89 Michigan newspapers and individuals.

The News competes in the Daily C contest that includes newspapers with circulation between 5,001 and 11,000 subscribers.

The 2022 contest honored stories published between Aug. 1, 2021 and July 31, 2022.