PRESS DEMOCRAT WINS AWARDS

The Press Democrat was honored Tuesday by the nation's largest group of

financial journalists for its coverage of Exchange Bank's lending losses and

the AGA Financial scandal.

Staff Writer Kevin McCallum won the top awards in the enterprise and

project reporting categories in the annual Best in Business contest staged by

the Society of American Business Editors and Writers.

The Nov. 23, 2008, package of stories on Exchange Bank, ''Wrong Time, Wrong

Place,'' was ''a solid professional piece of research and writing,'' the

judges noted.

The Sept. 5, 2008, project on AGA Financial, ''Life Savings Lost to

Fraud,'' was ''clear and reader-friendly,'' the judges wrote.

The contest drew entries across the United States from daily newspapers up

to 125,000 circulation.

-- Ted Appel