JUNE BEST OF THE MONTH

Congratulations to Caleb McWilliams, selected Best Overall for June in the newsroom and The Oklahomans employee of the month.

Caleb often goes above and beyond the call of duty, but his efforts during the recent go-live for DC-X, the new newsroom operating system, surpassed his normal efforts, said Amy Raymond, senior news editor. His role in the go-lives was as a trainer and support person, which is essentially customer service.

Caleb and Ebony Dallas trained designers to prepare them to use the new system, tailoring the classes to the participants experience levels. He created handouts for everyone with easy-to-follow directions and reminders about how to use the new system.

Those are the basics of what he was supposed to do.

What he ended up doing helped get us through unforeseen challenges we experienced, Raymond said. Our daytime designers were the first to go live. Caleb came in about four hours before his shift just to help out and make sure that the designers had someone who could help them if they had questions.

The designers werent ill-prepared. They just work on the pages with the zoned ad stacks, and, as such, have the most challenging task to plan and execute pages.

The second day, though, was when Caleb really stepped up.

He came in early again. Amy said we might have been sunk had he not.

The zone designers had their software changed to a new version overnight, which created complications for everyone involved. He helped designers get their pages done and then worked the full night shift.

He is a patient trainer and doesnt mind answering the same question multiple times. He is responsive to the types of questions he was hearing repeatedly. For instance, he noticed several people had problems with what are called Content Groups in the new system. He created a new handout to help people group things properly. This has an effect on not just the page, but also downstream on iPad production.

One of the visiting German employees of PPI saw Calebs handouts and asked for copies of them because he thought they were clear and helpful.

In addition to supporting the go-live for News, Business and Sports, he helped identify and document problems with the new system and made suggestions to improve our InDesign libraries.

After working really long hours, he didnt ask for a day off. Instead, he volunteered to handle design of the Edmond Living Guide, which is no easy task at 96 pages.

In a month when many people worked hard to launch a new system, Calebs efforts stand out and deserve recognition, Raymond said.

Best Beat or Breaking News Story

From: Don Mecoy

Nominee: Steve Lackmeyer

Steve broke news of the planned development for the long-neglected First National Center in downtown, also revealing for the first time the identity of the skyscraper's mysterious buyer. He also developed the concept for a graphic that showed how the plan would divide the building into retail, office space, a four-star hotel and apartments. A sidebar delved into how the plan would affect current tenants of building. A big-time scoop that other local media still haven't matched. And he continues to dig into the slightly sketchy background of that buyer.

http://newsok.com/article/5426754Best Business Story or Business Feature

From: Don Mecoy

Nominee: Brianna Bailey

Brianna's ability to burrow through voluminous court filings for the rare gem uncovered a defamation lawsuit filed by billionaire oilman Harold Hamm against the former longtime head of the state's largest energy industry group. Hamm claimed he was damaged by a Facebook posting by Mickey Thompson that scolded Hamm for trying to squelch science linking energy activity and earthquakes. The story generated a tremendous amount of social media activity, on and off our website. And other media were left to follow Brianna's lead.

http://newsok.com/article/5430721Best Sports Story

From: Ryan Sharp

Nominee: Jason Kersey

Jason Kerseys obit/news story on Bob Barry Jr.s death.

http://newsok.com/longtime-sports-voice-bob-barry-jr.-dies-at-58/article/5428925Best Feature Story

From: Matt Price

Nominee: Heather Warlick

This front-page story from Heather examined an Oklahoma camp that helps kids deal with effects of parents' addictions. Statistics show that in Oklahoma, one in four school-age children are directly affected by a loved one dealing with addiction.

Comment from Kelly Dyer Fry: It was really well done. It was a sensitive topic that she approached in a positive way.

http://newsok.com/article/5428260Best Specialty Feature

From: Matt Price

Nominee: Savannah Evanoff

Oklahoma City student Anna Jantzen, 16, already has completed her first symphony one that was performed recently by more than 20 professional musicians in a private setting arranged by the Oklahoma City-based Allied Arts.

Reader comments: From Elizabeth Spears Johnston, Orchestra Conductor at Pershing Middle School: This is awesome! I love seeing young students finding their voice. The arts in Oklahoma are alive and well thanks to some great teachers! From Gwyn McClendon Dominick: Nice, uplifting article. Good job.http://newsok.com/article/5426026#commentLinkBest Column

From: Ryan Sharp

Nominee: Berry Tramel

Berry Tramels column on the legacy of Bob Barry Jr. and Bob Barry Sr. on KFOR.

http://newsok.com/tramel-after-49-years-channel-4-will-never-be-the-same/article/5429986Best Project/Enterprise/In-Depth Story

From: Phil OConnor

Nominee: Juliana Keeping

Juliana's four-part series, Saving the Last Dance, was an emotional journey through the final days of the life of dance studio owner Shannon Primeau. Juliana's diligent effort to get the story right drew praise from both Primeau's family and readers.

http://www.oklahoman.com/saving-the-last-danceBest Watchdog Story

From: Robby Trammell

Nominee: Andrew Knittle

Page 1 Potawatomis take city of Shawnee to tribal court over flood damage (Knittle) (6-7-15)

http://archive.newsok.com/olive/apa/oklahoman/SharedView.Article.aspx?href=DOK%2F2015%2F06%2F07&id=Ar00101&sk=150D7C97Best Blog/Social Media Effort

From: Paula Burkes

Nominee: Paula Burkes

I was compelled by my own experience at my annual mammogram to write about an additional $53 charged for the latest technology to detect breast cancer. The blog found its way to the Mass.-based mfg. of the technology, who used it -- and a future print column July 1 -- to help lobby insurers to cover 3D mammograms. Feasibly, this effort could lead to improved health care for all women--and even fewer deaths.

http://newsok.com/mind-your-own-business-is-saving-53-worth-risking-incurable-breast-cancer/article/5429200Best Video

From: Phil OConnor

Nominee (s): Dave Morris, Bryan Terry, Tim MoneyMoving videos for Saving the Last Dance lent tremendous power to the project. A wonderful enhancement that brought a tear to the eye.

http://www.oklahoman.com/saving-the-last-danceBest Photo

From: Doug Hoke

Nominee: Steve Sisney

Water pours over Turner Falls and floods the park below on Thursday, June 18, 2015 in Davis, Okla. Photo by Steve Sisney, The Oklahoman

This was one of the most popular shots online during the flooding.

Best Design/Graphic/Illustration

From: Todd Pendleton

Nominee (s): Felicia Murray, Chris Schoelen

Best Headline

From: Tom Maupin

Nominee: Felicia Murray

Renovation is stuck in park -- Page 1a, all, June 8, 2015 Story about weather causing delays in Memorial Park construction in OKC.

Special Effort to Improve Accuracy

From: Tom Maupin

Nominee: Tom Maupin1. Flag history mistake caught. A June 24 Page 1 story used the term Stars and Bars for the Confederate flag that was once displayed at the state Capitol. Tom knew that reference was to the Souths national flag, which was not the familiar flag at the Capitol. The flag at the Capitol was the Confederate battle flag, which is based on the St. Andrews Cross design. The storys wording was changed to Confederate flag.

2. Business headline was misleading. A headline for a June 27 business story read: U.S. investigates brakes on Ford F-150s. That implied all Ford F-150 pickups are under investigation. The story said those being checked are from the 2011 and 2012 model years with 3.5-liter six-cylinder turbocharged engines. Tom was slot and changed the headline to: Some Ford pickups are under review.

3. Headline was wrong. A submitted headline read: More officials at Fed see just one rate hike to occur this year. Tom slotted the June 18 business item and did not see that the headline was backed up in the story. Tom changed the headline to: More officials at Fed expect slower increase for rates in 15.

Also, Business name misspelled. Slotting a June 18 business item, Tom saw this headline: Rasing Cane's opens Yukon store. The story had the correct spelling: Raising Canes. Tom made the fix.

Special Recognition

From: Ryan Sharp

Nominee: Jenni Carlson

We recognize Jenni for her work on the annual scholar athlete package. Jenni carries that special project through from start to finish every year. Thank you, Jenni.