The City and Regional Magazine Association recently announced the finalists of its annual national magazine awards. SLM Media is a finalist for seven selections across six categories, placing alongside some of the industry’s most respected publications. A host of accomplished judges—from the likes of The Atlantic, Fast Company, Forbes, New York Magazine, The New York Times, and The Washington Post, as well as journalism professors from the Missouri School of Journalism—selected the finalists. Below is a brief look at the categories in which SLM Media is a finalist.
Newsletter: The Big Think
The Big Think has an ambitious aim, as the bi-weekly newsletter’s name implies, and launched at a critical time last summer. “As we look ahead to a post-pandemic world, our city faces a crossroads: We can either cement our present state or chart a new course,” deputy editor Amanda Woytus noted last May. “It’s time to not only imagine what St. Louis could do with more, but also plot out the steps the region could take to make meaningful change.” In doing so, The Big Think tackles some of the region’s most pressing issues and highlights the people and policies that are transforming our region, as well as ones in other cities that could drive change. Over the past year, Woytus has covered such topics as how St. Louis might spend its American Rescue Plan funding, looking to Birmingham to see how the funds might be invested in a forward-looking way. The newsletter also examined how educators and policy makers are shaping the future in other ways, including ways in which pre-K is expanding—but not without challenges. As one expert observed, “Navigating the system of how to find pre-K as a privileged child in affluent geographies in St. Louis is very difficult. It can be very expensive, and if you are a child living in traditionally underserved communities, you can only imagine some of the barriers that these families face to accessing pre-K.” And the newsletter shined a light on St. Louisan Samantha Lee, who’s helping activate the city one tiny park at a time. As Woytus notes, “Sometimes big ideas come in small packages.” Sign up for The Big Think here.
Ancillary: Home/Shelter: Design STL
At a time when we’re spending more time outside, the May/June issue of Design STL took an in-depth look at a welcome subject: gardening. “I’ve officially swapped interiors for outdoor spaces as my preferred places to spend extra decorating dollars,” noted Design STL editor-in-chief Veronica Theodoro. “This shift in mindset can be traced to last spring, when, collectively, we reassessed the role of porches and patios in our everyday lives, resolving to make these areas as inviting as any room inside the home.” The issue highlights some of the metro area’s most magnificent backyards, in addition to sharing advice on how to plant vertical gardens, harvest recipe-ready herbs, plant outdoor window boxes, and more.
Profile: “The Necessity of Invention” by Jeannette Cooperman
In a lively profile, writer Jeannette Cooperman explores the insatiable curiosity of Mike Saigh, a St. Louis innovator who imagined what became the Kindle, what became YouTube, and what is becoming a new way to communicate with animals. As Cooperman writes: “Years before Kindle or iTunes, he would come up with a framework for mobile access to databases. He also envisioned an alert system that takes over your phone during an active shooter attack, an investment network that could turn masterpieces and rare antiques into liquid assets, a smart bit that just might revolutionize horse racing, and—his latest, as-yet-unrealized hope—a way to bring manufacturing back to the U.S. and stabilize the economy. Saigh would stay under the radar, living quietly in St. Louis and assiduously avoiding the spotlight, but those who came to know him would declare him a genius.”
Feature & Spread Design
After a strong showing in the design categories last year—including top honors for the Designer of the Year and Feature Design categories—design director Tom White and art director Emily Cramsey are up for three design-related categories this year. In the Spread Design category, SLM is a finalist for two designs. The illustration for “Take One of the Worst Pandemics Ever—And Add a Million Scams” conveys the frustration and chaos that’s come during the past two years. Taking a different, more conceptual approach, “Take Me To the River,” highlighting the plucky (and unofficial) campaign to make St. Louis a mecca for big-river recreation, takes a simpler, elegant approach that explores the intersection of words and illustration to bring the Mighty Mississippi to life. And in the Feature Design category, SLM is a finalist for last September’s “Fall Escapes” feature, with an array of stunning photography from destinations across the region.
Cover Excellence: Sept/Nov/Dec
Finally, SLM is a finalist in CRMA’s “Cover Excellence” category for the September, November, and December 2021 issues. The trio of covers span a wide range of both topics and treatments: a brilliant photo of paddle boarding at sunset for the fall travel feature, a selfie-style image that captures the fun of shopping with friends, and an appetizing photo of classic comfort food.
