Biz media win Vanguard awards

The Financial Times and The Wall Street Journal received awards in Advertising Age’s Media Vanguard Awards, announced Monday.

The Financial Times won in the Global Spotlight category for its Alphaville blog. Advertising Age said, “Alphaville moves fast, tailors coverage to what the readers find interesting and doesn’t shy away from something truly foreign to markets coverage: some light-hearted humor. In addition to weighing in on the stories, Alphaville wants to own the conversation around them. In 2008, they launched a forum, The Long Room, where financial professionals (9,300 members) chew the fat over everything from restaurant reviews to financial reform.”

The Journal won for “Best Newspaper Paid iPad Edition.” Advertising Age wrote, “It’s robust but easy to use, somehow both busy and clean, and manages to stay current — as one expects of something connected to the web — yet carry the weight of a morning edition. It pulls off that last trick by offering you either the ‘Today’ edition, which reflects the morning paper’s print edition, or the ‘Now’ edition, which pulls in The Journal’s latest reporting from the web.”

The Journal also won the “Best Business News Online Video Network.” Advertising Age wrote, “The network has been rolling out compelling, smartly packaged series (over the past year: News Hub, Opinion Journal Live, Digits, Media Matters, Markets Hub, The Big Interview and Campaign Journal) at breakneck pace using a worldwide network of reporters and videographers. In essence, an organization known for its inky flagship newspaper has become one of the most nimble web-broadcasting journalistic enterprises anywhere.”

See all of the winners here.