For the second consecutive year, the Automobile Club of Southern California’s Westways magazine has received a Society of American Travel Writers (SATW) Foundation award, considered the most prestigious awards in travel journalism in the country.
The Society’s Foundation honored Westways with a Bronze 2012 Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Award for “Best Travel Coverage in Other Magazines” (meaning travel coverage in magazines that aren’t strictly covering travel). Midwest Living magazine took the Gold and Southern Living took the Silver. A year ago, Westways received the Silver award in the same competitive category. Elizabeth Harryman is Travel Editor and Leslie Yap is Editor-in-Chief of the member magazine.
The Society’s awards announcement and judges’ comments praised Westways, stating that: “This magazine is a bit of a sleeper — attractive but not ostentatious, featuring upscale destinations (Singapore, Australia’s Great Barrier Reef) but also those off the beaten path (love the “5 Worth the Drive” feature). The layout allows for loads of content without overwhelming the reader; articles are concise, for example. The magazine offers its readers plenty of practical tips such as how to use (misuse, or avoid) social media while traveling. The magazine gets high marks for its piece on traveling with a disability (“The Best Therapy”), demonstrating a commitment to inclusivity that so many travel magazines lack.”
This year marks the 28th anniversary of the competition. The awards, recognized as the Pulitzer Prize in this field, were announced earlier this month at the annual conference of the Society.
The competition, which recognizes work from spring 2011 to spring 2012, drew more than 1,100 entries. Judging was done by faculty at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill School of Journalism and Mass Communication. The SATW Foundation travel journalism awards are named for the late Lowell Thomas, acclaimed broadcast journalist, prolific author and world explorer. The late James Michener, noted author, is the Society’s founding honorary chairman.
Published by the Auto Club, Westways serves six million members covering travel, lifestyle, shopping discounts, insurance and automotive relevant topics, as well as local and regional affairs as well as benefits of AAA membership.
The Automobile Club of Southern California, the largest member of the AAA federation of motor clubs, has been serving members since 1900. Today, the Auto Club’s members benefit by roadside assistance, auto, home and life insurance products and services, exclusive member discount programs, travel agency, financial products, automotive pricing and buying programs, automotive testing and analysis, trip planning services and highway and transportation safety programs. Information about these products and services is available on the Auto Club’s Web site at www.AAA.com.