Congratulations to our sister site PhinneyWood.com for winning a prestigious national journalism award. The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) announced this morning that PhinneyWood won the Online Deadline Reporting (Independent) category for the devastating arson fire on October 23, 2009, “Three-Alarm Fire Destroys Greenwood Businesses.”

“..we were on the scene moments after the call came in and posted updates throughout the day. We also received dozens of email tips and photos from PhinneyWood readers. So, this award is also a testament to the power of community journalism,” editor Doree Armstrong writes.

The SPJ Sigma Delta Chi awards are judged by veteran journalists around the country. Judges went through more than 1,300 entries for awards covering online, newspaper, magazine, television and radio.