Honolulu Star-Advertiser editorial page editor Lucy Young-Oda won second- place honors in a national journalism contest for her editorials on the U.S. Navy’s response to the Red Hill water contamination crisis.
America’s Newspapers awarded Young-Oda’s work in the Carmage Walls Commentary Prize competition for Editorials in the over 35,000-circulation category.
The organization said the competition’s judges cited the “tremendous amount of detail” in Young-Oda’s editorials.
“Excellent work on the Red Hill spill, taking on a tough wrong-doer … the U.S. Navy. She spelled out the impact of the toxic spill and efforts to evade accountability. She held their feet to the fire,” the judges said.
“This award is great recognition of the importance of high-quality editorials to our readers and the impact they have in shaping community opinion and promoting positive change,” Star- Advertiser Publisher Dennis Francis said. “Congratulations to Lucy and the entire editorial team.”
Young-Oda said, “Since November 2021 when the U.S. Navy’s fuel spillage contaminated some of Oahu’s drinking-water supply, it has been a constant battle to hold the military to account, and to get straight answers. Despite the military’s ongoing lack of transparency and subterfuge, our editorials have pressed to get answers for the public, and to remind the Navy/military that Hawaii will hold them accountable for poisoning our water and environment.”
She said the efforts of the newspaper’s editorial department and many water-safety advocates contributed to forcing the U.S. Defense Department to close the Red Hill jet fuel- storage facility and to mitigate environmental damage from the fuel spill.
Dion Lefler, opinion editor of the Wichita Eagle, won first place in the category and Nick Hrkman, community impact editor of the Dayton Daily News, garnered third place.
America’s Newspapers officials said the award is named for the late Benjamin Carmage Walls, whose career spanned seven decades primarily in community newspapers and who advocated for strong, courageous and positive editorial page leadership.
