Written by Miriam Raftery
June 26, 2026 (East San Diego County) – The San Diego Chapter of the Society of Skilled Journalists final evening offered 4 Awards for Excellence in Journalism to ECM Editor Miriam Raftery and Affiliate Editor Karen Perlman. The awards acknowledged ECM’s protection of points associated to Lakeside’s El Capitan Dam, climate firefighting preparedness, the impacts of mass deportations, and our information to touring within the desert areas of San Diego County.
Raftery acquired a primary place award for an audio function titled “Who will be there when they come for you??” Pay attention interview with immigration legal professional Nora Milner, which aired on KNSJ’s East County Journal radio present. You too can learn a summary From that interview by Alex Shore. Within the interview, Milner expressed concern in regards to the blatant denial of due course of to immigrants underneath the Trump administration, warned that even residents usually are not secure, and supplied recommendation to those that are involved about being visited by ICE or detained for potential deportation.
Perelman acquired second place for investigative/company story within the every day reporting class for “The owner of the proposed Lakeside sand mine is suing the city of San Diego for damages resulting from the release of water into El Capitan Dam.Its investigative reporting detailed the harmful situations of the previous earthen dam and the possibly catastrophic lack of life if it ruptured. The report highlighted how town’s failure to restore or rebuild the dam necessitated a launch of water that raised the water desk, main a property proprietor downstream to sue town for destroying the location’s sand mining potential.
Third place in Investigative/Company Reporting went to Raftery for her article, “Does the San Diego area have sufficient aerial firefighting capacity for the upcoming season?Raftery initiated the investigation report after studying that Cal Hearth’s Ramona Air Pressure Base could be closed for a few 12 months and that the SDG&E aerial crane that fireplace authorities relied on to help aerial firefighting was now not obtainable to the producer, which had refused to resume the lease.
Perelman and Raftery shared the third-place award for journey writing for his or her complete essay titled “Our guide to desert destinations in San Diego“The article was written as a part of a collection of regional guides for the newly launched East County Journal.”Visit Eastern ProvinceA piece highlighting journey and tourism locations within the inland San Diego space.