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LINCOLN — The Nebraska Examiner was honored last weekend as part of the annual Nebraska Press Association’s awards.
Zach Wendling was named Outstanding Young Nebraska Journalist for 2026, an annual competition aimed at celebrating Nebraska reporters, editors and photographers under age 30.
Judges appreciated his deep dives into “all things Unicameral.” They appreciated that he takes the time to learn the subject of his stories and convey them with data, organizers said.
The Examiner placed third in the Nebraska Press Association’s 2026 Better Newspaper Contest on Saturday, finishing behind the Flatwater Free Press and the Lincoln Journal-Star.
Wendling placed first in explanatory journalism for reporting on medical cannabis, and Juan Salinas II finished second in breaking news for his coverage of U.S. Rep. Don Bacon’s retirement from Congress.
Judges praised Salinas for highlighting “the role of local journalism in keeping the public informed during breaking events that directly affect the community.”
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This was the first year the Examiner and other digital-first outlets were eligible to join as members and compete in the statewide contest for newspapers.
The contest’s top newspaper honors in the sweepstakes for best overall newspaper products went to the weekly Knox County News and the daily Hastings Tribune.
The group gave its highest individual honor this year — the Master Editor-Publisher Award — to Russ Pankonin of Imperial, the longtime co-owner and publisher of Johnson Publications.
The 2022 Nebraska Press Association hall of famer ran several newspapers, including his hometown Imperial Republican. He is a past president of the Nebraska Press Association.
Carrie Pitzer of the Antelope County News won the A-Mark Prize for Investigative Journalism. Todd von Kampen of the North Platte Telegraph won the group’s first-ever Community Investigative Journalism Award.
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