Pitt Wins IABC/Pittsburgh Best in Show Award

Pitt’s Office of Public Affairs received 23 awards—including Best in Show for the Newspaper of Record: The Pittsburgh Courier, 1907-1965 project—during the International Association of Business Communicators awards ceremony on Sept. 30. Front row, from left: Terry Capp (in purple sweater), University Marketing and Communications (UMC) director of publications and marketing; Dave Crawley, KDKA-TV reporter and the evening’s master of ceremonies; Pitt Vice Chancellor for Public Affairs Robert Hill; Cara Masset, senior editor, Pitt Magazine; and Susan Tresatti, UMC Web producer. Back row, from left: Debra McCluskey, UMC Web producer; Amy Porta Kleebank, UMC art director; Randy Oest, UMC Web designer; Don Henderson, UMC assistant creative director; Sarah Nelsen, UMC art director; Ervin Dyer, senior editor, Pitt Magazine; and Rainey Opperman-Dermond, UMC art director.

The University of Pittsburgh’s February 2010 world-premiere screening of Newspaper of Record: The Pittsburgh Courier, 1907-1965 won Best in Show from the Pittsburgh Chapter of the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) at its 31st annual Golden Triangle Awards ceremony, held Sept. 30 at the University Club.

The honor, which was one of 23 IABC awards that Pitt received this year, also marked Pitt’s second consecutive IABC Best in Show award and its fifth IABC Best in Show award since 2003.

Pitt Chancellor Mark A. Nordenberg and Vice Chancellor for Public Affairs Robert Hill hosted the world-premiere screening of Newspaper of Record, a documentary by filmmaker and Pitt alumnus Kenneth Love. The by-invitation event, held Feb. 1 in The Twentieth Century Club, served as Pitt’s 2010 K. Leroy Irvis Black History Month Program for 2010. The event and documentary celebrated the 58-year illustrious history of The Pittsburgh Courier, which became the most influential Black newspaper in the nation, with a peak circulation of 400,000. Pitt’s handling of the entire Newspaper of Record project was awarded Best in Show in the communication management/other category.

The Pittsburgh IABC chapter’s awards recognize excellence in communication management, communication skills, and communication creativity throughout Western Pennsylvania.

IABC/Pittsburgh presented Pitt’s Office of Public Affairs projects and/or staff members with the following six Awards of Excellence.

Communication Management/Media Relations
Eds and Meds

Communication Management/Special Events
Newspaper of Record: The Pittsburgh Courier, 1907-1965

Communication Management/Other
Newspaper of Record: The Pittsburgh Courier, 1907-1965

Communication Skills/Publications (Annual Reports)
2009 Economic Impact Report

Communication Creative/Other Publications
Heinz Memorial Chapel Weddings (Amy Porta Kleebank)

Communication Creative/Other
Newspaper of Record invitation (Marci Belchick Beas)

The following 16 Awards of Honor were presented to Pitt communicators for University projects.

Communication Management/Media Relations
G-20 Summit

Communication Skills/Annual Reports
2009 Report of Chancellor Mark A. Nordenberg

Communication Skills/Special Publications
Alumni Life Member Calendar

Communication Skills/News Writing
Pitt Magazine, “Invisible Harm” (Ervin Dyer)

Communication Skills/Feature Writing
Pitt Magazine, “Grow It” (Cara Hayden)

Communication Skills/Web Sites
Women’s Studies

Communication Creative/Magazines
Pitt Med (Elena Cerri)

Outside the Classroom (Sarah Nelsen)

Communication Creative/Annual Reports
2009 Economic Impact Report (Don Henderson)

Communication Creative/Other Publications
Alumni Life Member Calendar (Sarah Nelsen)

Office of Technology Management Innovator’s Guide (Jane Dudley)

Newspaper of Record program (Marci Belchick Beas)

Communication Creative/Book and Magazine Covers
2009 Report of Chancellor Mark A. Nordenberg
(Marci Belchick Beas)

Bridges, Fall 2009, “Mean Streets” (Bill Ivins)

Communication Creative/Film/TV/Advertising
Institutional Ad

Communication Creative/Print/Advertising
Student Tax Ads

Previously, Pitt received Best in Show awards for its 2008-09 special event Free at Last? Slavery in Pittsburgh in the 18th and 19th Centuries; for its 2006 exhibition From Colored Orphans to Youth Development: The 125-Year History of Three Rivers Youth; for the design of Pitt Med magazine in 2005; and for its 2003 Report of Chancellor Mark A. Nordenberg.