Annita Thomas, host of Travel With Annita is a winner in the 2020-21 Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Competition.
Thomas recently took the Gold place award in the Travel Audio-Radio category for Carolina Gold Rice With Farmer Rollen Chalmers on WDUN AM550 and FM102.9 The annual competition is sponsored by the Society of American Travel Writers Foundation.
Winners of the awards, the most prestigious in the field of travel journalism, were announced October 4 at the annual conference of SATW, the premier professional organization of travel journalists and communicators. This year’s gathering was in Milwaukee, WI.
The competition drew 1,278 entries, and the University of Missouri School of Journalism oversaw judging. This year, the SATW Foundation presented 104 awards in 27 categories and more than $22,000 in prize money to journalists. The awards are named for Lowell Thomas, acclaimed broadcast journalist, prolific author and world explorer during five decades in journalism.
"Who knew rice could be so interesting, or that it has such a rich tradition in the Southern Low Country?" the judges said in their assessment of Thomas' work. "During her program, Annita Thomas takes listeners with her to Rollen Chalmers’ rice plantation to learn of his passion - and his mission - to carry out the legacy of his enslaved ancestors. The conversation is active and engaging, and the use of natural and ambient sound creates a sense of place for listeners. The digital elements complement the radio show perfectly, adding those visuals and bringing the story full circle."
Among other winners, Katherine LaGrave, digital features editor for Afar Media, earned the title of Lowell Thomas Travel Journalist of the Year for a portfolio of work in the past year. Gold winners included Travel + Leisure in Travel Magazines, The Plain Dealer (Cleveland) in Newspaper Travel Coverage and Condé Nast Traveler (CNTraveler.com) in Travel Journalism Websites. The New York Times earned a total of eight awards, including five Gold.
Contributions by Gold Supporter Carnival Corp. and other donors help sustain the competition and make the prizes possible.
For more information about the awards, including a full list of winners and judges’ comments, and SATW, visit www.satwf.com and www.satw.org.
