CHARLESTON — The staff of The Intelligencer and Wheeling News-Register picked up 17 awards, including six first places, in the 2025 West Virginia Press Association Advertising and Editorial Better Newspaper Contest. That award haul led to the newspapers winning second place in General Excellence in Division I, which includes the state’s largest dailies.

The awards were handed out during the annual WVPA convention, held this year on the campus of the University of Charleston in the state’s capital. They honored news, sports, feature and editorial writing along with advertising work done in 2024.

The newsroom staff won first place in Breaking News for its coverage of the flooding and landslides that came from the storms on April 5, 2024. The Ohio River crested at 41.49 feet at that point, the 26th-highest recorded crest in Wheeling history. The newspapers provided in-depth coverage in stories and images both as the river began to rise and residents prepared for the coming waters and in the aftermath as those residents cleaned up.

The newsroom staff also won first place for best special section for its “Women of Progress” series, which took an in-depth look at women in the Ohio Valley who have been integral in moving the region forward in several areas including health care, education and community.

Reporters Eric Ayres and Joselyn King won first place for Governmental Affairs reporting for their investigation into negative campaign mailers against several Wheeling mayoral candidates that popped into mailboxes prior to the city elections. The mailers were found to have an address on them of an unsuspecting Wheeling resident who had nothing to do with the mailers.

Editor John McCabe won first place for Best Editorial for his editorial “SSAC Decision on Super Six Shameful,” which criticized the West Virginia Secondary School Activities Commission’s decision to move the state football championships from its longtime home in Wheeling to Charleston.

Ayres and page designer Scott Hanson won first place for Best Lifestyle Pages for the April 7 Life section of the Sunday News-Register.

The advertising department won first place for Best Classified Section for its Classified Network.

“I am so proud of our staff for its exceptional work in 2024,” Managing Editor Derek Redd said. “This group went above and beyond to provide the readers of this region important information on major events. The Ohio Valley should be confident that the Intelligencer and Wheeling News-Register will continue that work every day.”

“Our advertising department does all it can to serve the businesses of the Ohio Valley,” said Heather Francis, advertising director of The Intelligencer and Wheeling News-Register. “It’s fantastic to see their efforts honored in this way.

The newspapers also picked up three second-place awards and eight third-place awards. Second-place awards came in the following categories:

– Ayres and Hanson for Best Lifestyle Pages for the Sept. 29, 2024 Life section of the Sunday News-Register

– The Intelligencer/Wheeling News-Register sports staff for Best Sports Pages for its Feb. 12, 2024 edition

– The advertising department for Best Color Ad, Quarter-Page or Less for “Wicked Wednesday Wing Night.”

Third-place awards came in the following categories:

– Redd for Best News Feature for his profile on former Wheeling Mayor and U.S. Senate candidate Glenn Elliott

– McCabe for Best Editorial for his editorial “Wheeling is Failing in Homeless Matter.”

– McCabe for Best Editorial Page for the pages from May 9, May 10 and May 12, 2024.

– The sports staff for Best Sports Special Section for its 2024 Prep Football Preview

– The advertising department for Best Ad Campaign, Half Page or Larger for “Voices of Valor”

– The advertising department for Best Agency Advertisement for “I’ll Be There.”

– The advertising department for Best Newspaper Promotional Campaign for “Ogden Newspapers Wellness Weekend.”

– The advertising department for Best Theme Page(s) for “Small Business Week.”

“Congratulations to our staff for another year of excellent service to our community, both our readers and our business partners,” said James Spanner, general manager of The Intelligencer and Wheeling News-Register. “It is wonderful to see their hard work recognized at a statewide level, and we all will strive to maintain that momentum for the Ohio Valley.”