FRESNO AND TULARE COUNTY – Mineral King Publishing, owner of The Sun-Gazette and Mid Valley Times newspapers, secured 22 different honors across news reporting, outreach and collaborative efforts in the 2025 California Journalism Awards.
The awards, sponsored by the California News Publishers Association, were announced throughout the month of June. Work from Mineral King Publishing was recognized for its excellence across a wide variety of categories, including coverage of business and the economy, food writing, religion and faith writing, sports reporting, transportation reporting and audience engagement.
“Mineral King Publishing’s mission is to build stronger communities with quality information,” President and Publisher Reggie Ellis said. “The breadth and number of statewide awards we won this year encompass nearly 20 communities across two counties and serve as a testament to our dedication to serving the communities we call home.”
The Sun-Gazette was named a finalist in 12 categories and earned three first-place awards, four second-place awards, two third-place awards, one fourth-place award and two fifth-place awards. Mid Valley Times was named a finalist in 10 categories and earned two first-place awards, three second-place awards, two third-place awards, two fourth-place awards and one fifth-place award.
All awards were in Division 7, which represents small weekly print and digital publications.
Top honors
The Sun-Gazette received three first-place honors. This included the Audience and Community Engagement Award for the News & Brews events hosted by Mineral King Publishing’s marketing team across Tulare County.
Another first place honor went to both The Sun-Gazette and SJV Water, a local nonprofit newsroom, for Excellence in Collaborations and Partnerships. Ellis, along with Mineral King Publishing Executive Editor and Vice President Paul Myers and Managing Editor Danielle Gutierrez, earned the award next to SJV Water Editor and CEO Lois Henry and reporter Lisa McEwen.
The award was for reporting done in January and February 2025 regarding orders from the Trump Administration to release millions of gallons of water from the Terminus Dam at Kaweah Lake and the Schaffer Dam at Success Lake.
In a submission letter to CNPA, Ellis explained how the reporting unfolded. With both newsrooms having small teams, the partnership allowed The Sun-Gazette staff to warn residents and local government officials of potential flood risks and SJV Water staff to report on the federal administration’s policies and impacts on Valley water issues.
The Sun-Gazette also received first place in the labor reporting category for two articles by Karis Caddell published in September and October 2025. The articles addressed negotiations and an eventual agreement between the teachers’ union and Porterville Unified School District.
First-place recognitions awarded to Mid Valley Times were in the profile story category and the coverage of local government category.
In the profile story category, the article “Dinuba Women’s Club reflects on 130-year legacy” by Serena Bettis highlighted the Dinuba Woman’s Club’s 130th anniversary celebration and all the club has contributed to the community.
The award in coverage of local government went to a series of six articles written by Serena Bettis throughout 2025 related to the Selma City Council. The articles awarded covered the city council’s reorganization after the 2024 election, the firing of the former city manager and, finally, the appointment of the city’s current city manager.
“These awards are a testament to the hard work our newsroom puts into keeping our communities informed,” Myers said. “More than that, the breadth of the awards we earned reflects just how many important stories there are to tell across Fresno and Tulare counties — and we still don’t get to everything we want to cover. I think that speaks to how much more lies ahead.”
Additional recognition
Other awards received by The Sun-Gazette include:
- 2nd place in agricultural reporting for the article “Deportations stand to destabilize Tulare County economy” by Karis Caddell
- 2nd place in public service journalism for coverage of the Earlimart Public Utilities District by Karis Caddell
- 2nd place in the community focus award for the article “Redwood students honor legacy of Edmond Wysinger” by Karis Caddell
- 2nd place in columns for two articles, “A special place” and “Homeless farms,” from the “Notes From Home” series by Sun-Gazette contributor Trudy Wischemann
- 3rd place in the enterprise news story/series category for “G Farms caught in label squeeze” by Karis Caddell
- 3rd place in social justice and civic engagement reporting for a series of articles on protests in Three Rivers by Karis Caddell
- 4th place in transportation reporting for the article “$3M settlement puts TCRTA, Porterville back on track” by Karis Caddell
- 5th place in food writing and reporting for the article “Visalia chef’s dreams are finally sunny side up” by Karis Caddell
- 5th place in coverage of business and the economy for the article “New owners ‘OnDeck’ for Visalia Rawhide” by Reggie Ellis
Other awards received by Mid Valley Times include:
- 2nd place in religion and faith writing for the article “Sister Lucy Cassarino upholds 60 years of faith” by Jon Acevedo
- 2nd place in the sports feature story category for the article “Sanger boxer one step closer to Olympic dream” by Jason Smithberg
- 2nd place in transportation reporting for a series of articles on the Measure C debate in Fresno County by Serena Bettis
- 3rd place in immigration reporting for the article “Fear of ICE freezes over Selma Flea Market” by Jon Acevedo
- 3rd place in agricultural reporting for the article “State of ag industry is ripe with challenges, opportunity” by Serena Bettis
- 4th place in coverage of business and the economy for the article “Sanger’s Mi Linda Tierra pays tribute to its history” by Serena Bettis
- 4th place in coverage of youth and education for the article “Student test scores show record growth at KCUSD” by Serena Bettis
- 5th place in the feature story category for the article “Dinuba rallies around those impacted by Haden Apartments fire” by Serena Bettis
