The Marketing Department of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York was recognized for digital and creative work in four areas during the 2023 Catholic Media Awards conference held in Baltimore in June.

The awards were presented by the Catholic Media Association (CMA), which represents Catholic social media, digital, design, and print organizations throughout the United States and Canada. This year’s awards stood out among 3,800 submissions by more than 600 member organizations.

Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York was recognized for:

Best New Website

Honorable Mention, www.CatholicCharitiesNY.org, by John-Mark de Palma and Joe Keenan

CMA remarks: This website merits recognition for its attention to certain accessibility issues for its users.

Best Social Media Campaign

Third Place Honors, “12 Days of Christmas Challenge,” by John-Mark de Palma and Danielle Fontanez

CMA remarks: The 12 Days of Christmas social media campaign goes a step beyond the traditional and sometimes predictable seasonable approach. Instead, the Catholic Charities social media team launched a 13-day consecutive call to action and challenge on Facebook and Instagram. Using highly produced visuals that align with the theme and a consistently clean look, the team’s creative campaign secured a high engagement rate and overall effective outreach.

Best Multimedia Package Series

Third Place Honors, “Welcoming the Asylum Seeker,” by John-Mark de Palma, Peter Feuerherd, and Hamilton Wyatt-Luth

CMA remarks: The images of asylum seekers captured by Catholic Charities of New York were haunting yet provided hope for the future. The articles outlined the hardships faced by the families seeking help and the photography and social media outreach was superb.

Best Use of Graphics in Social Media

Third Place Honors, Asylum and Immigration Campaign – “Myths and Facts,” by

Karen Knox-Bruce and John-Mark de Palma 

CMA remarks: Bold, informative graphics and images counteract harmful myths about immigration and explain how Catholic Charities New York is helping asylum seekers. The clear explanations and concise wording contributed to strong audience engagement.

Best Interview

Second Place Honors, “The Whistleblower,” by Peter Feuerherd, Author, for Franciscan Media.

CMA remarks: Excellent interview that uses details and strong writing to keep readers engaged.

Ana Rodriguez-Soto, Chair of the Awards Committee, said in June 2023 edition of The Catholic Journalist:

“The entries honored each year reflect the wide variety of topics covered by our publications. That certainly refutes the stereotype that Catholic journalists spend their time covering Masses or following the bishop around the diocese.

As Gaudium et Spes put it: ‘The joys and hopes, the grief and anguish of the people of our time, especially of those who are poor or afflicted, are the joys and hopes, the grief and anguish of the followers of Christ as well.’

Those are the stories Catholic journalists cover. Stories of joy and hope, of grief and anguish, of the poor and afflicted.

While secular media get bogged down in the ‘horse race’ of primaries and general elections, in the ‘he said/she said’ of liberal versus conservative, in the gory details of crimes and who-did-what-to-whom, I like to think our focus is – and must be – slightly different.

Catholic journalists focus on people – all God’s people – and how God’s presence in the world is made visible through them and with them and in the outstretched hands of those who call themselves Catholic and Christian.

In that sense, the ‘good news’ we cover is resolutely ‘catholic’ – that is, universal. And the proof is in the varied list of winning entries published in this edition of The Catholic Journalist.

Congratulations to all.”