The Town Crier on Saturday was awarded first place for its editorial pages entry in the California Newspaper Publisher Association’s Better Newspaper Contest.

The Town Crier earned top honors in Category B (weekly newspapers with a circulation of 11,001-25,000) for the overall quality of its Comment section, which includes editorials and letters to the editor. The Town Crier was judged on two sections from September 2005; the editorials focused on local relief efforts for Hurricane Katrina and public education in Los Altos Hills.

Contest winners were announced at the CNPA’s 118th annual convention, held Thursday through Saturday at the Sheraton Universal Hotel in Universal City. Editor Bruce Barton and advertising sales manager Tom Zahiralis were on hand to receive the first-place plaque for the Town Crier.

The CNPA’s Better Newspapers Contest is an annual newsroom competition that receives entries from hundreds of newspapers - weeklies and dailies - throughout the state.

For a complete list of winners, visit www.cnpa.com.