Congrats to H&R!

I was pleased to see that my friends and former colleagues at reason were recognized for their outstanding work in journalism over the weekend at the Southern California Journalism Awards.

I am proud to have worked with them last summer and feel lucky that I may call some of them friends.

Last night, reason won three first place awards, five seconds, and three honorable mentions at the 50th annual Southern California Journalism Awards. The winners were:

Kerry Howley, Best Magazine News/Investigative Article, for "Who Owns Your Body Parts?" Judges' comments: "This story's terrific lead drew you in with a revelation on how lucrative this business is. It fits the definition of a good expose."

Jacob Sullum, Best Magazine Feature/Commentary, for "Thank Deng Xiapoing for Little Girls." Judges' comments: "This engaging story mixes comprehensive, well-researched material with the author's personal experiences and perspective."

Nick Gillespie and staff, Best News Organization Website, for reason.com. Comments: "The true marks of a successful website are graphics and functions that pull you in, then content that doesn't easily let you go. Whenever we started to exit, something else would catch our eyes."

Second places: Radley Balko, Magazine News/Investigative, for "CSI: Mississippi." Brian Doherty, Magazine Entertainment Feature, for "Robert Heinlein at 100." Drew Carey, Multimedia Package, for "Medical Marijuana." Nick Gillespie, Online Design/Layout, for reason.com. Nick Gillespie and staff, Group Weblog, for Hit & Run.

Honorable mention (that's L.A. Press Clubese for "third place"): Amy Sturgis, Magazine Entertainment Review/Criticism/Column, for "Florida's Forgotten Rebels." Ronald Bailey, Online Column, for "The Secrets of Intangible Wealth." And Matt Welch, Magazine Feature/Commentary, for "Be Afraid of President McCain."

Congratulations, guys!