Bulletin takes home 16 awards at annual New Hampshire Press Association honors

The New Hampshire Bulletin won 16 awards at the New Hampshire Press Association’s annual Distinguished Journalism Awards banquet on Thursday night, including Journalist of the Year for William Skipworth. The honors, for stories published in 2025, were presented at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at St. Anselm College in Manchester.

In addition to the statewide Journalist of the Year award, Skipworth also won first place awards in the Bulletin’s class for investigative story/series and community service, both for his series on abuse and neglect in the state’s disability care system, and political reporting, for his coverage of a Republican House member’s battle with his own party’s leaders. 

In choosing Skipworth as journalist of the year, the judges said: “This was an easy decision. William’s reporting is dogged, difficult, and incredibly powerful.” Referring to his investigative work, the judges said: “The Bulletin doesn’t let anyone who should be held accountable off the hook. … If coverage this strong doesn’t convince state leaders to make changes — the final story indicates that the governor had taken notice — nothing will.”

Maya Mitchell won two first place awards, for rookie of the year and business reporting, for her look at the financial plight of the state’s early care and education providers. The judges said: “The reporter does an excellent job of showing the day-to-day hardship that comes with running a childcare center. … Excellent job of melding personal stories and hard data to show why the industry is struggling in New Hampshire.”

Molly Rains collected a first-place award for feature story, an exploration of how New Hampshire farmers are coping with drought. The judges called her work interesting and informative, “offering a detailed look at an issue that threatens both an agricultural staple and tradition.”

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And Ethan DeWitt took first for government reporting for his coverage of last year’s state budget drama. “Comprehensive, well-written, engaging, and reader-friendly,” the judges said. “Not an easy achievement when reporting on the ins and outs of formulating and adopting a state budget.”

 The Bulletin also collected several second- and third-place awards. DeWitt won two second-place awards, for political reporting and education reporting, and a third place for crime/court reporting. Rains won second place for environmental reporting. Skipworth won second place for general news story and three third-place awards for feature story, health reporting, and political reporting. 

This year’s banquet also honored longtime New Hampshire journalist Bob Charest, of the New Hampshire Union Leader and InDepthNH.org, with a lifetime achievement award.

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