Judges for the Jesse H. Neal Awards, the most distinguished editorial honors for specialized journalism, have named FreightWaves a finalist in five categories in this year’s contest, among them Best Media Brand (Overall Editorial Excellence) and Best Website.
Finalists for the Neals, considered the Pulitzer Prize of business journalism, were announced Monday, and winners will be named during a virtual presentation June 9.
In addition to Best Media Brand and Best Website, FreightWaves is a finalist for Best New Product for its smooth pivot to virtual events after the COVID-19 pandemic struck, as well as Best Use of Video/Webcast and Best Infographics.
“The Neal Awards recognize the best of the best in business media, and FreightWaves takes great pride in the work of our editorial, technical and production staff, as well as our market analysts,” said FreightWaves founder and CEO Craig Fuller. “Being named a finalist in five categories in this highly competitive contest speaks to the professionalism, dedication and industry expertise that our team brings to the job every day.”
For Best Media Brand, the company’s entry notes, “FreightWaves and its American Shipper sister brand report supply chain news and provide expert perspective on the world of freight across a broad spectrum of media platforms.” Those include traditional news articles, webcasts, podcasts, newsletters, social media, virtual events, apps and email.
FreightWaves’ entry in the Best Website category states, “freightwaves.com prioritizes immediacy with a regularly updated news feed and offers an intuitive, visually appealing format that guides visitors seamlessly to their areas of interest. In addition to the most in-depth national and international news from the world of supply chain logistics, subcategories on freightwaves.com zero in on freight-related technology; industry closings and layoffs; earnings reports; the maritime, trucking, rail and air cargo sectors; infographics; wide-ranging podcasts and webcasts; and advice on industry best practices.”
In the Best New Product entry, FreightWaves spotlighted its rapid transition from in-person gatherings to industry standard-setting virtual events in the wake of the pandemic.
“FreightWaves not only made this pivot but created a best-in-class virtual conference experience,” the entry states. “FreightWaves decided early in the process that its virtual events were not going to be a pale imitation of in-person events; they would be a completely new user experience. FreightWaves adhered to television-quality production values, which became a waterfall effect drawing the highest-quality speakers and further enhancing the user experience. The results? Total video impressions for FreightWaves’ 2020 virtual events exceeded 500,000, and total views came to more than 400,000.”
FreightWaves’ webcasts have built a robust following in a few short years since the company’s founding. Among other topics, the company’s Neal Awards entry for Best Use of Video/Webcast highlights in-depth interviews with top-ranking officials from NASA who were eager to share their expert points of view during FreightWaves’ inaugural SpaceWaves virtual forum.
“Livestreamed webcasts adhering to high production values build on the expansive news coverage at freightwaves.com by bringing in additional industry perspectives, as well as insights from FreightWaves’ team of journalists and market analysts,” the entry notes.
For the Best Infographics category, FreightWaves submitted graphics that “harvested the essential elements of a story to present them in a concise, easily understood way by distilling the most compelling facts” from both research and articles in FreightWaves and American Shipper.
Established in 1955, the Neal Awards named FreightWaves a winner in multiple categories last year.
FreightWaves is the leading source for information about the trucking, maritime, air, rail and intermodal freight markets. In 2021, FreightWaves publishes content that drives over 3 million page views and 1 million unique visitors each month.