The Current took home four awards from the Louisiana Press Association this year, highlighting our small-but-mighty outlet’s clout in enterprise reporting and digital storytelling.
Local government reporter Andrew Capps and lead investigative reporter Leslie Turk won the 2024 Gibbs Adams Award in Division 5 for their 2023 investigation of Lafayette Consolidated Government’s massive drainage program. Capps and Turk detailed the knotty ramifications of former Mayor-President Josh Guillory’s “new pace of government” and the prospect that tens of millions of tax dollars were spent without any demonstrated reduction in flood risk.
Health reporter Alena Maschke won first prize in Division 5 for news reporting for her story “We can’t police the way used to: Lafayette police to form new crisis intervention unit.” Her story documents how Lafayette law enforcement are adopting new strategies to address encounters with mental health crises while responding to calls on the beat. Maschke, who reports for both The Current and The Acadiana Advocate, also received the Division 2 first prize in breaking news for her coverage of the 2023 wildfires.
Community reporter Elliot Wade won first prize for best news video for his series This is Lafayette. Wade’s short-form deep dives into local issues of substance captures and serves the younger, digitally savvy audience that’s often difficult for news publishers to reach.
The Current won second place overall for its web site, designed by developer Cory Birdsong, reflecting its continued excellence in digital publishing.
Operating since 2018, The Current is unique in Louisiana’s media landscape. It’s among three nonprofit news outlets serving Louisiana audiences and the only one operating in Lafayette.
The Current’s award-winning journalism is shared and cited by partners around the state, including The Advocate, which won 2024 newspaper of the year.