Labor Day is the ideal day to share some exciting news about a large unexpected packet that arrived in the mail from the California News Publishers Association last week. For many months I’d been anticipating an envelope containing the impressive 12 CNPA awards bestowed upon A News Cafe in May for our team’s outstanding journalism in 2024. I’d already shamelessly boasted about the dozen awards. I’d expressed pride in the fact that A News Cafe had garnered five CNPA awards last year, seven the previous year, and six the year before that, for a total of 18 awards in a three years.
Speaking of the number 18, I can scarcely believe it, but A News Cafe turns 18 in a few months. Those of you who’ve been with us from the start, can you believe it’s been 18 years? Yes, I am an extremely proud publisher. ANC produces the work we do as a completely independent journalism site, with zero strings attached to any paywalls, corporations, Google assistance, or even a non-profit board. We’re probably doing this the hard way, but the independence and results are worth it.
But back to the awards and that thick, unexpected packet. After opening the envelope, I carefully counted to ensure I’d received all 12 of ANC’s awards. But a funny thing happened after I reached the 12th award; more awards followed, and kept coming. Thirteen, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 and finally, 20. Twenty awards. Not 12, as we’d thought in May.
A News Cafe’s awards from the California News Publishers Association for outstanding journalism in 2024 take up a good part of publisher Doni Chamberlain’s dining room floor.
I can’t explain what happened, except perhaps CNPA prematurely announced the winners in May, before the judging was complete. I don’t know, and frankly, I don’t care. It’s one of the best glitches I’ve encountered in a very long time. I’ll take it.
You may notice that I often describe our staff as award-winning, which may seem braggy, but mainly, I use the term ‘award-winning’ because it’s true. I also use the term ‘award-winning’ every chance I get when referring to ANC staff because it’s noteworthy that not only does A News Cafe’s team consist of some of the most hard-working, talented, ethical and tenacious professionals I know, but the California News Publisher’s Association — California’s premier journalism association — continually recognizes A News Cafe for providing outstanding journalism.
It’s easy for someone to read an ANC story and not know how many hours (weeks, even months, years) of research were invested in that one story, or how long some of the Shasta County Board of Supervisors meetings or town halls or court sessions lasted before the reporter could go home and distill massive quantities of raw, sometimes confusing and repetitive information into something interesting, accurate and compelling enough to bring you back back time after time, story after story.
No segue, but those who’ve been with ANC for years may recall that I hate asking for money. And I’m a horrible saleswoman. But hear me out when I point out (again) that if just a small fraction — like 5 percent — of all our regular readers subscribed at even $5 a month, we’d have resources galore, and I could pay ANC professionals what they deserve, not just what ANC can afford.
I’ll never understand what inspires so many of you to give so freely (thank you so much) while others have been reading ANC since 2007 and have never felt moved to contribute even $1.35 a month (our lowest voluntary subscription level).
Yes, it’s true that I usually save my plea for subscriptions until November, ANC’s birthday month. But since we’re sharing good news about ANC awards, this seems a good opportunity to repeat the fact that we could literally not not do the award-winning work we do without our generous voluntary subscribers. Of course, we have our fantastic loyal business advertisers (you’re awesome, Shasta College and Wallner Plumbing), but the truth is, it’s our sustaining subscribers who keep ANC afloat.
I wish I could find the right combination of magic words to convince those non-contributing regular readers how much we genuinely need their help. Maybe they believe other readers will carry the load. Or maybe they don’t care. I don’t know. I really don’t.
Maybe I’ll find a better pitch by November. I’m open to suggestions.
In the meantime, please join me in celebrating the following 20 CNPA awards, and the combined six winning ANC staffers recognized for excellence in journalism:
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- Publisher/Journalist Doni Chamberlain
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- Journalist R.V. Scheide
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- Journalist Mike Chapman
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- Reporter/Professor Shawn Schwaller
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- Cartoonist Phil Fountain
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- Video reporter Benjamin Nowain
- Journalist/Publisher Doni Chamberlain, 5 awards
- Journalist R.V. Scheide, 4 awards
- Journalist Mike Chapman, 4 awards
- Reporter/CSU Professor Shawn Schwaller, 3 awards
- Editorial Cartoonist Phil Fountain, 2 awards
- Video Reporter Benjamin Nowain, 2 awards
The following award categories are in alphabetical order, followed by the winner’s name and award place.
Agricultural Reporting
- Mike Chapman, First Place: ‘It’s ugly’: Grasshoppers annihilate backyard gardens, ranchers’ rangeland in massive insect invasion
Coverage of Local Government
- R.V. Scheide, Second Place: Shasta County’s ”Election Integrity” Movement R.V. Scheide (Note, this single story represents a sample of numerous stories by R.V. Scheide submitted to CNPA regarding the 2024 election coverage.)
- Doni Chamberlain, Fifth Place: Shasta County Board of Supervisors District 3 Election Coverage (Note, this story represents a single sample from numerous stories by Doni Chamberlain submitted to CNPA regarding the District 3 Board of Supervisor election coverage.)
Coverage of Youth and Education
Screenshot
- R.V. Scheide, First Place: Extensive Education Coverage for 2024 (Note, this story represents a single sample from numerous stories by R.V. Scheide submitted to CNPA regarding 2024 election coverage.)
Editorial Cartoon
- Phil Fountain, First Place: ‘No qualified candidates need apply’
- Phil Fountain, Second Place: ‘Gosh, what’s the problem? We’ll put in a window, sheesh’
Enterprise News Story or Series
- Shawn Schwaller, Fourth Place: Bidwell Mansion Fire Rekindles Conflicting Views of Chico’s Indigenous History
Environment Reporting
- Shawn Schwaller, First Place: Northern California Tribes Fight to Protect Maidu Ancestral Land in Plumas National Forest from Destructive Rainbow Gathering
- R.V. Scheide, Second Place: Study Suggests California Should Start Counting Timber Industry’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Food Writing/Reporting
- Doni Chamberlain, Second Place: Unusual Turkey Roasting Technique Leads to Memories of Julia Child Encounter Bygone Newspaper Career
Health Reporting
- Mike Chapman, Third Place: Faces of Fentanyl: Grieving Local Parents Band Together to Confront Lethal Drug that Killed Their Sons
Investigative Reporting
- R.V. Scheide, Second Place: The Redemption of Eric Magrini Parts 1 and 2
- Doni Chamberlain. Fourth Place: After Months, Years, Rumors Lead to Facts Revealed About Candidate Corkey Harmon’s Tragic Family Ties
- Doni Chamberlain, Fifth Place: Victims, Classmates, Parents, County Staff Reveal Supervisor Kevin Crye’s Dark, Devious, Demented Side
Local Coverage of Election 2024
- Doni Chamberlain, First Place: Coverage of the Shasta County District 3 Board of Supervisors Race 2024. This is just one of multiple stories by Doni Chamberlain representing a larger body of work in this category.
Profile Story
- Mike Chapman. First Place: ‘A Tough Kid’: Redding Teen Triumphs Over Rare Medical Condition
Public Service Journalism
- Mike Chapman, Third Place: Faces of fentanyl: Grieving local parents band together to confront lethal drug that killed their sons
Religion and Faith Writing
- Shawn Schwaller, First Place: Former Bethel-Music Leader, Sean Feucht, is Mega-Rich from Redding-Grown MAGA Christian Empire
Video Journalism – News
- Benjamin Nowain, First Place: North State Breakdown Episode 30: Election Integrity Under Fire: Fraud Claims and Double Standards in Shasta County
- Benjamin Nowain, Second Place: North State Breakdown Episode 22: Preferential Appointments, Political Retaliation by Shasta County Board Majority
That’s it. Behold, all 20 CNPA awards from six ANC team members for excellence in 2024 journalism. We’re already collecting contenders for the 2025 CNPA contest.
Thank you, A News Cafe advertisers and supporters, for making local, award-winning independent journalism possible.
And to those regular readers who’ve never contributed to this site, thank you in advance for maybe making today the day when you join the other conscientious, truly indispensable sustaining subscribers. We need you. We appreciate you. We thank you.
On this Labor Day, I’m especially grateful for the hard work of the entire ANC staff of journalists, reporters, video reporters and the one and only spectacular cartoonist, Phil Fountain, each of whom won multiple CNPA awards this year. And who can forget ANC moderator/assistant Barbara Rice? She’s supremely calm under pressure, someone with an eagle eye for details, and who keeps the trolls at bay. If CNPA gave out awards for news company assistants, surely Barbara would win first place.
OK, I’ve probably boasted enough about A News Cafe for one day.
What were your most memorable jobs?
On this Labor Day I invite you to share in the comments section your most memorable jobs, for better or for worse, and how they changed or influenced you.
Hotel Casa Blanca ’50’s-era postcard. Image courtesy of Redding Community Facebook page.
I’ll go first. When I was around 13 or 14 I worked as a maid one summer at the Hotel Casa Blanca on Miracle Mile, an establishment owned by my foster mother’s stepfather (Dick Corradetti). The Casa Blanca consisted of a collection of Mission-styled cottages, rather than typical motel or hotel rooms. Now that I think about my time as a motel maid, I believe my younger sister Bethany may have had the worst job, working alone in the Casa Blanca laundry room. What’s even more shocking is the fact that she’s three years younger, which put her at about 10 or 11 years old.
Postcard back of the Hotel Casa Blanca.
Either way, the Casa Blanca maid job was disgusting. It left me with vivid memories of bodily fluids and solids left behind by inconsiderate slobs, oblivious to who would eventually clean up their unspeakable messes.
To this day, I cannot go into a motel, hotel or even Airbnb without wondering what would be revealed if a black light wand was waved around every part of the room: bed, dresser, walls, floors, door handles, etc. Consequently, no barefeet for me inside any kind of rented lodging. No sitting or lying on top of bedspreads. I wipe down TV remotes. I thoroughly hand-wash drinking glasses before using them. I keep my suitcases off the floor (you know, bedbugs) and put my mind at ease by lifting the corner of the mattress to check for bugs.
If you think I’m being a germaphobe (that’s OK, I’ve been called worse), a 2006 ABC News Primetime project investigated 20 well-known hotels in New York, Miami, Houston and Los Angeles to determine the establishments’ cleanliness, and revealed some sobering information.
“Regardless of cost — from a one-star hotel room priced at $55 a night to a five-star room hotel room renting for $400 a night — lab results showed traces of urine or semen in every room Primetime tested,” revealed the report.
Gross.
So, there you go. I described my most memorable job. Please help me banish these nasty Casa Blanca memories by sharing your stories of your most unforgettable jobs.
