Mainer brought more than an award back from weekly editors' annual conference

Mo Mehlsak, editor of The Forecaster of Falmouth, Maine, attended last week's International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors conference to accept the annual Golden Quill award for editorial writing, but he took away much more from the event than his award, he writes in an editorial. "Although I've been a member of ISWNE since shortly after joining The Forecaster six years ago, I'd never attended the annual meeting," Mehlsak, right, writes. "This one, based at Eastern Kentucky University in Richmond and organized by EKU's Communication Department and the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, left me feeling sorry I've missed the others." (Forecaster photo)

Mahlsak wrote of the eclectic group of editors from six nations and 21 U.S. states, "Our area codes and circulation numbers may be different, but we face common challenges. Workshops on the impact of the Internet on weekly publishing and journalism ethics, the use of video on the Web and competition from online-only news providers provoked thoughtful discussions and provided plenty of food for thought."

The trip to Kentucky's Bluegrass region and Eastern Kentucky mining communities also left its impression on Mehlsak, but perhaps no event had more lasting impact that meeting with the editor of The Mountain Eagle in Whitesburg. "I was honored to accept my award for editorial writing on the same evening that ISWNE presented Ben Gish (and his parents) with the 35th annual Gene Cervi Award, named for a Colorado editor who exemplified the conviction that "good journalism begets good government," Mehlsak writes. "It was an inspiring conclusion to an inspiring week." (Read more)

You can read Mehlask's acceptance speech at the bottom of his story above, and see The Rural Blog's previous reporting on the conference here and here.