Publishing Honors Go to H&HN and Emergency Management Magazines, ENR.com, and Inc. Writer Burt Helm at ASBPE’s 35th Annual Azbee Awards
OAK BROOK, Ill., July 29, 2013 — ASBPE, a professional educational and networking association for business-to-business writers, editors, and designers, honored H&HN (Hospitals & Health Networks) and Emergency Management as Magazines of the Year, while naming Engineering News-Record’s ENR.com its Web Site of the Year. Find the full list of winners here.
At ASBPE’s 35th Azbee Awards of Excellence, the Stephen Barr Award for feature writing was presented to Inc. Magazine senior writer Burt Helm. Read Helm’s winning story in the November 2012 Inc., “After the Squeeze,” examined the causes and effects of a bank-lending drought that has disproportionately hit the small-business people who are the publication’s main audience. It was the 10th annual Stephen Barr Award, named for an award-winning journalist who died in 2002 at the age of 43. The award is administered by the not-for-profit ASPBE Foundation, which promotes educational efforts aimed at giving more prominence to B2B journalism.
H&HN was named the top B2B magazine with revenue of $2 million or more, while Emergency Management won in the less-than-$2-million division. Crain’s Cleveland Business was named for having produced the Multi-Platform Presentation of the Year, an increasingly important category as the media balances its digital and print formats.
Honorable mentions in the Magazine of the Year competition were won in the larger-publication division by Architect and Automotive News, while under-$2-million honorable mentions went to Rejuvenate and Stitches. Rounding out the Top Ten in the large-magazine competition were Builder, Building Design+Construction, CIO, Engineering News-Record, GOVERNING, InvestmentNews, and QSR. Smaller publications in the Top Ten were Business Jet Traveler, EDUCAUSE Review, EXHIBITOR, Government Technology, Music Inc., Oregon Business, and Wearables. Multi-platform-presentation honorable mentions went to The American Lawyer and EcoHome.
“We are at a critical juncture in B2B publishing, and the industry is rapidly evolving to reflect advancements in digital media technology,” says Amy Fischbach, the outgoing national president and an Overland Park, Kan.-based freelance writer and editor. “This year’s national award winners should be commended for their strong commitment to their readers and site visitors and their pursuit for excellence.”
Succeeding Fischbach is Mark Schlack, senior vice president, editorial, of Newton, Mass.-based online publisher TechTarget.
The award presentation, held at The Grotto restaurant in Oak Brook, Ill., concluded a one-day ASBPE national editorial conference, which featured keynote speaker Paul Conley. At the banquet, CFO Magazine founding editor-in-chief Julia Homer received ASBPE’s 2013 Lifetime Achievement Award.
The Azbee Awards of Excellence program is one of the most competitive contests for B2B online and print publications. The awards, with more than 60 categories, recognize outstanding work by magazines, newsletters, and digital media like Web sites, e-newsletters, digital magazines, and blogs. The competition is open to all U.S.-based publications.
Founded in 1964 and previously known as the American Society of Business Publication Editors, ASBPE is the professional association for full-time and freelance editors, writers, art directors, and designers employed by business, trade, association, and specialty press. ASBPE has chapters nationwide in Chicago, Kansas City, New York, Boston, Cleveland, and Washington, D.C. For more information, please visit www.asbpe.org.