BEE WINS 3 AWARDS IN ANNUAL CONTEST

Story Tracing Donated Heart Takes First Place.

Former Fresno Bee reporter Kimi Yoshino won first place in feature writing
while a special report about the scourge of methamphetamine captured second
place for public service in the Associated Press News Executives Council's
annual contest for California and Nevada.

Yoshino's story, "Straight from the Heart," was the winner in the Division
2 category for newspapers with a circulation between 75,000 and 199,000.
Published June 11, 2000, in The Bee, it traced the path of a transplanted
heart from the donor -- a Fresno teen-ager gunned down in a drive-by
shooting -- to the recipient -- a man who became a hero by tackling a
gunman who had opened fire in a group of seniors near Phoenix.

Yoshino now works for the Los Angeles Times.

"A Madness Called Meth," an 18-page special section, was developed and
published jointly by The Fresno Bee, The Modesto Bee and The Sacramento
Bee. Published Oct. 8, 2000, the section described the growing epidemic of
methamphetamine production, distribution and use in California, where it
has become a social, medical and environmental nightmare. Its award was in
Division 1, which is for newspapers with circulation of 200,000 or more.

"Through dogged reporting and beautiful writing, Kimi Yoshino told a
touching story that shows how even from tragedy, positives can flow," said
Bee executive editor Charlie Waters. "And the public service award to 'A
Madness Called Meth,' when combined with tremendous response from local,
state and federal officials, is further validation of our project's central
message that methamphetamine is a plague. We are very pleased that judges
honored these two outstanding pieces of journalism."

The Bee's Web site, fresnobee.com, placed second in Division 2 for overall
Internet excellence.

Said Ken Riddick, director of interactive media: "This type of recognition
underscores for readers our commitment to remaining the Valley's first and
most reliable choice for online news and information. Our staff works very
hard daily toward that goal."

The Visalia Times-Delta captured three awards in the division for daily
newspapers with a circulation of 25,000 or less: first place in news
photography to Steve R. Fujimoto; first place in graphics to Nick Gayton,
Steve R. Fujimoto and Amee Thompson; and a tie for second place in feature
writing to Dan Martin.

Awards in 62 categories will be presented at the annual APNEC Conference
May 5 in Monterey. The winners were chosen from more than 1,100 entries by
editors from AP member newspapers in Illinois.

The contest's two top honors, the Mark Twain awards for newswriting and
photos, will be announced at the meeting.