Journalist John Petrolino, a member of the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms’ Board of Directors, has earned several awards from the New Jersey Society of Professional Journalists.
The organization announced its 2025 Excellence in Journalism awards winners, and Petrolino came away with four prizes.
Best Coverage of State Government*
1st Place:
for Bearing Arms and AmmoLand News
Potential Abuses in Permit to Carry Application Process
Best Coverage of Municipal Government
1st Place:
for Bearing Arms
“Permit to Carry Denial Over a Driving Record”
Best News Series
2nd Place:
for Bearing Arms
“Gun Ownership Is Alive and Well in the Garden State”
Best Short Documentary
2nd Place
“John Kabourakis Talks About an Attempted Home Invasion and Self-Defending With a Firearm”
“This is easily the biggest contest we’ve relaunched it four years ago,” said P. Kenneth Burns, president of NJ-SPJ. “Our judges, who are out of the region, continue to be impressed by the quality of the journalism that comes from our state and, by proxy, the two metro areas we are part of. Reporters in New Jersey and who cover New Jersey should be proud of the work they do on a daily basis.”
Burns also offered his sincerest apologies on behalf of the organization for not having the annual awards ceremony in 2025.
“If the news cycle for 2025 is any indication — between what has been happening in D.C. and a very active gubernatorial contest at home — we all have been busy, which is a great thing,” he said. “But with a shrinking number of reporters covering New Jersey, there is a clear need and case for expansion in the Garden State.”
