Wall Street Journal wins two Loeb Awards

The Wall Street Journal, Baltimore Sun, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Marketwatch, The New York Times and Syracuse Post-Standard were winners of the 2007 Gerald Loeb Awards given out Monday evening in New York.

Charles Fishman of Fast Company magazine and columnist Steve Bailey of the Boston Globe also received awards, considered the Pulitzer Prizes of business journalism.

The Journal won two awards. Its series of articles last year on the backdating of stock options, which earlier this year won a Pulitzer Prize, was the winner in the large newspaper category, while Ann Davis, Henny Sender and Gregory Zuckerman of The Journal won in the deadline writing category for a story about the implosion of a highflying hedge fund.

The Sun reporters Chiaki Kawajiri, Gady A. Epstein and Stephanie Desmonwon won in the medium newspaper category for a series of stories that judges said was a “well-written tale of Maryland’s storied blue crab artfully woven into a saga of globalization and entrepreneurship, revealing both the winners and losers of outsourcing, fueled by the American consumer’s demand for cheap products.”

Mike McAndrew and Michelle Breidenbach of The Post-Standard in Syracuse, N.Y. won in the small newspaper category for a series that revealed New York’s appallingly mismanaged Empire Zone program of tax incentives designed to promote and expand businesses, and exposed millions of dollars in waste. Despite fierce resistance from the city, the reporters crafted a classic piece of investigative journalism by scouring property records, federal securities disclosures and other public records.

Fishman won in the magazine catagory for “How Many Lightbulbs Does It Take to Change the World? One,” a story about energy conservation and personal responsibility.Â

Bailey was the commentary category winner while Heather Landy of the Star-Telegram won in the beat reporter category for “Radio Shack CEO’s Resume in Question.”

Alistair Barr of MarketWatch won in the news service and online category for “Who Are the Short Sellers?,” while Louis Uchitelle of The New York Times was the feature writing winner for “Rewriting the Social Contract.”

NBC News and CBS’ “60 Minutes” won in the television categories, while Chris Anderson was the business book winner for “The Long Tail: Why the Future of Business Is Selling Less of More” published by Hyperion Books. Â