The Los Angeles Press Club released its 2026 Southern California Journalism Awards finalists Monday morning. Colorado Boulevard Newspaper earned 10 nominations across reporting, commentary, criticism, feature writing, and editorial cartoon categories.
By Rena Kurlander
Publisher and editor Wafic Khalil was named a finalist for Journalist of the Year in the print category for outlets under 50,000 circulation. Khalil also received a nomination in the headline category for “No Words.”
The newspaper’s staff and contributors were recognized across multiple divisions.
In consumer news or feature reporting, Melissa Michelson was nominated for “First-Timer’s Guide to the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 at the Rose Bowl.”
Film criticism finalist honors went to Garrett Rowlan in the category of criticism of film for works exceeding 1,000 words.
The paper’s reporting team earned recognition in local politics and government reporting for “Saving Pasadena Unified Will Take Sacrifice From All of Us,” credited to the Colorado Boulevard Newspaper team.
Additional finalists included:
- Eva Melvin for humor and satire writing with “Alhambra Adds Three New Signs—In Case You Forgot Where You Are”
- Wesley Reutimann for sports commentary with “LA Without Open Streets? A Setback for Public Health and Community Building”
- Marc Ratner for editorial cartoon, “Note to Self: Lonely Elf”
In the commentary category for newspapers under 50,000 circulation, two Colorado Boulevard Newspaper contributors were nominated:
- Nic Arnzen for “Standing With Jimmy Kimmel: Altadena Remembers Who Showed Up”
- Scott Phelps for “Quid Pro Quo Politics in Pasadena?”
The Southern California Journalism Awards recognize work produced across print, online, broadcast, and multimedia platforms throughout the region.










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