Magazine Publishers of America - Digital Awards

Like any industry, the magazine industry has a "governing body." This governing body is the arbiter of what's best in their industry. So, they have awards (mostly to themselves feel special, but also to recognize the talent and the trends).

Now, the Magazine Publishers of America (MPA) are having their annual round awards. Last year, BACKPACKER won for Best Magazine section. I blogged about that on one of my alter-ego sites.

This time around, something close to my heart, the website that is my day-in/day-out gig, Backpacker.com/hikes, was honored as a finalist for "Best Online Community" last week in the MPA's first-ever digital awards competition. This all went down during the third annual “Magazines 24/7" digital conference in New York City. The 2006 MPA Digital Awards honored excellence and innovation of magazine brands on all digital platforms in 11 categories.

This is a signficant achievement in the magazine industry, and it's great to see Backpacker recognized alongside such online giants as Epicurious, Sports Illustrated, Wired, and a Rodale sister publication, Runners' World (which was a finalist in the "Web-Only Tool" category for its Smart Coach).

To see the other winners and finalists, click here

This project started a year before my time at Backpacker with a big idea and a little bit of money. Through the tireless work of my boss and our staff (that would be me and a parade of interns over the past 22 months) we've developed a vibrant community of map correspondents all over the country. Safe to say, the Boulder office does good work.

But, the team at Trimble Outdoors is what makes our site more just an idea waiting for its full expression. Thanks to them for having the confidence in our team to collaborate with Backpacker on this groundbreaking project.

Here's what the MPA had to say:

BEST ONLINE COMMUNITY

The “Best Online Community” category recognizes the best use of forums, chat rooms, user-generated content and other interactive features that engage readers.

Winner: 1UP.com Clubs
1UP.com is the #1 gamer community on the web where gamers can read blogs, join clubs and exchange messages with thousands of like-minded enthusiasts.

2nd Place: The Nest
The site is built and maintained by recent-weds in an official capacity (editors) and unofficial (bloggers and members) and boasts unique built-for-two budgeting tools, checklists, and strong user-generated, tried-and-true advice on all things newly wed—from home-buying tips, to easy entertaining ideas and managing the in-laws.

3rd Place (tie): Backpacker’s Trail Network
The Trail Network provides Backpacker readers with cutting edge technology and user-generated content in the form of an extensive network of hikes, GPS data, 3D trail maps, aerial photography and Google Earth flyovers.

Epicurious Forums and Member Recipes
One of the first true community/social networking sites,every minute of the day someone is exchanging favorite recipes or seeking advice from the community or adding their own favorite family recipes into a newly created database just for them.


[Okay. Enough of tooting our own horn. But still, it's huge.]