Judges for the Society for News Design's 26th contest loved L.A. again this year. The Los Angeles Times again dominated the contest, winning a record 77 awards, 13 more than the impressive 64 they won last year. Here's the breakdown from SND (full press release after the jump):

The top 10 winners in all 21 categories were the Los Angeles Times and its magazine, 77 awards; The New York Times and its magazine, 60; The Boston Globe and its magazine, 49; El Mundo of Madrid and its magazines, 49; Chicago Tribune and its magazine, 39; Hartford Courant, 38; San Jose Mercury News, 38; Plain Dealer, Cleveland, Ohio, 34; South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Fort Lauderdale, 23; and National Post in Toronto, 22.

Of the 190 newspapers from 29 countries winning awards, the U.S. led with 697 awards, followed by 94 for Spain, 58 for Canada, 45 for Mexico, 35 for Portugal, 30 for Germany, 29 for Sweden, 16 for El Salvador, and 11 for Brazil. Other award winners included newspapers from Argentina, China, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, England, Estonia, Finland, Hong Kong, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Panama, Peru, Poland, Republic of China, Scotland, Switzerland and Turkey.

*Update: 77 awards is apparently a record.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, March 4, 2005
Contact: Elise Burroughs, (401) 294-5234
Five publications earn "World’s Best-Designed Newspapers™" honors in SND international competition.
1,074 other winners chosen from a field of 15,020 entries.

North Kingstown, R.I. – The Society for News Design has named five "World’s Best-Designed Newspapers™" for the 26th annual "The Best of Newspaper Design™ Creative Competition." The winners were chosen from a field of more than 450 newspapers representing more than 29 countries that submitted work published in 2004.

The five "World’s Best-Designed Newspapers™" winners for 2004 are:
Der Tagesspiegel, Berlin, Germany, daily, circulation 150,000
Hartford Courant, Conn., USA, daily, circulation 250,000
Die Zeit, Hamburg, Germany, weekly, circulation 450,000
Marca, Madrid, Spain, daily, circulation 386,000
Svenska Dagbladet, Stockholm, Sweden, daily, circulation 189,000.

For the 20 other competition categories, judges awarded six Gold Medals, 79 Silver Medals and eight Judges’ Special Recognition awards. Awards of Excellence were bestowed on 986 entries.

The competition, co-sponsored by SND and Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, recognizes excellence in newspaper design, graphics and photography. The judging took place in two stages over two long weekends in February at the Newhouse School in Syracuse, N.Y. Entries numbered 15,020 in all 21 categories, a record for the 26-year-old competition.

The five judges for the "World’s Best-Designed Newspapers™" category, who made their choices Feb. 11-13, were:

Eduardo Danilo Ruiz, president of Danilo Black, SA de CV in Monterrey, Mexico
John M. Humenik, editor of the Quad-City Times in Davenport, Iowa
Leland F. "Buck" Ryan, associate professor at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Ky.
Sharon Roberts, assistant managing editor of the Austin American-Statesman, Texas
Bonnie Scranton, senior art director of Newsweek magazine in New York, N.Y.

The top 10 winners in all 21 categories were the Los Angeles Times and its magazine, 77 awards; The New York Times and its magazine, 60; The Boston Globe and its magazine, 49; El Mundo of Madrid and its magazines, 49; Chicago Tribune and its magazine, 39; Hartford (Conn.) Courant, 38; San Jose (Calif.) Mercury News, 38; Plain Dealer, Cleveland, Ohio, 34; South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Fort Lauderdale, 23; and National Post in Toronto, 22.

Of the 190 newspapers from 29 countries winning awards, the U.S. led with 697 awards, followed by 94 for Spain, 58 for Canada, 45 for Mexico, 35 for Portugal, 30 for Germany, 29 for Sweden, 16 for El Salvador, and 11 for Brazil. Other award winners included newspapers from Argentina, China, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, England, Estonia, Finland, Hong Kong, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Panama, Peru, Poland, Republic of China, Scotland, Switzerland and Turkey.

The 27 judges for the general competition, who met Feb. 18-21, were:

Tonia Cowan, graphics director, The Toronto Star, Ontario, Canada
Richard Curtis, M.E./graphics & photo, USA Today, McLean, Va.
Heidi de Laubenfels, AME/graphics, The Seattle Times, Wash.
Linda Eckstein, information graphics editor, Fortune Magazine, New York, N.Y.
Julie Elman, designer, The Virginian-Pilot, Norfolk, Va.
Tim Frank, senior editor/news design & graphics, The Arizona Republic, Phoenix
Janet Froelich, creative director, The New York Times Magazine, N.Y.
Bill Gaspard, news design director, Los Angeles Times, Calif.
Jeff Goertzen, senior graphics reporter, St. Petersburg Times, Fla.
Joe Kieta, editor, Merced Sun-Star, Calif.
David Kordalski, AME/visuals, The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, Ohio
Teresa Kriegsman, design editor, The News & Observer, Raleigh, N.C.
Marcy Mangels, AME/news, The Journal News, White Plains, N.Y.
Matt Mansfield, deputy M.E., San Jose Mercury News, Calif.
Alberto Nava, art director, Récord Diario Deportivo, México City
Matt Petty, art director/design, San Francisco Chronicle, Calif.
Evangelia Philippidis, editorial features illustrator, The Columbus Dispatch, Ohio
Brian Plonka, staff photographer, The Spokesman-Review, Spokane, Wash.
David Puckett, senior artist, The Charlotte Observer, N.C.
Gladys Rios, design consultant, Munster, Ind.
Alejandro Ros, design director, Pagiña 12, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Rob Schneider, sports design editor, The Dallas Morning News, Texas
Phaedra Singelis, deputy M.E., WashingtonPost.com, Arlington, Va.
Stacy Sweat, A.M.E./graphics & design, Chicago Tribune, Ill.
Juan Velasco, founder, 5W USA, New York, N.Y.
Chin Wang, design supervisor/features, The Boston Globe, Mass.
Sherman Williams, senior editor/visuals, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Wis.

The full results of the competition will be posted on SND’s Web site at http://www.snd.org in mid-March. Users will be able to query the awards database by category and/or publication to find more details about the winning entries. Images of the winning entries will be posted to the Web site about a month later. Entrants will be notified by e-mail about the specifics of their winning entries.

The top award winners will be honored at the Society’s Annual Workshop and Exhibition in Houston, Texas, Oct. 8, 2005. Winners will be showcased with judges’ comments in the 26th Edition book, "The Best of Newspaper Design™," scheduled for release this fall.

The Society for News Design, founded in 1979, is a 2,500-plus member organization with membership in 54 countries – including four professional and 16 student affiliates – dedicated to improving news presentation and design in all media.