About The Nome Nugget

The Nome Nugget newspaper is the oldest newspaper in Alaska, established in 1897. The paper offices are located on 222 Front Street, Nome, Alaska. We can be reached by telephone (907) 443-5235, by fax (yes, we still have one of those machines) at (907) 443-5112 and via email. The newsroom editor is Diana Haecker, diana@nomenugget.com. The advertising manager is Nils Hahn, ads@nomenugget.com

The Nome Nugget serves northwestern Alaska and is read worldwide on the Internet. 

The Nome Nugget is an independent, weekly newspaper, published by Nugget Publishing Corp, owned by  Diana Haecker and Nils Hahn. The newspaper is written, photographed and produced in Nome, and printed in Anchorage at Anchorage Printing.

The Alaska Press Club voted The Nome Nugget Newspaper as the best weekly newspaper in all of Alaska for the years 2012, 2021 and 2022. Every year this award winning paper receives top awards from state and national newspaper associations for outstanding journalism.

The Nome Nugget’s total circulation is 2,600 hardcopy newspapers.
In Nome and the 15 surrounding communities, distribution is accomplished through 20 Nome outlets, and in village stores and grocery markets in the region.

The Nome Nugget is delivered per subscription to readers nationwide . In addition The Nome Nugget distributes approximately 300 newspapers in the Anchorage area at the airport, at the main entrace of the Alaska Native Medical Center and at 6th Ave, near Anchorage City Hall.

The Nome Nugget is the adjudicated paper of record for the Second Judicial District.

 The Nome Nugget is also available for online subscriptions at www.nomenugget.net. Our online version is in a downloadable PDF format with all ads placed as they appear in the newspaper.

In this remote area of our world, the best way to reach people is through newspaper advertising. Nome is the logistical and economical hub for the surrounding 15 Bering Strait and Norton Sound communities, all located off the road system. The villages are Little Diomede, Shishmaref, Wales, Brevig Mission, Teller, Solomon, Council, White Mountain, Golovin, Elim, Koyuk, Shaktoolik, Unalakleet, St. Michaels and Stebbins.
 

ALASKA PRESS CLUB AWARDS

 

2022

Best Alaska weekly newspaper

Best Public Safety Reporting

First place: Diana Haecker, “Help didn’t come in time to rescue overdue boater”

Judge Christina Myer commented: “Careful handling of this family’s heartbreak with a fair look at how/whether it could have been avoided made this one stand out.”

Third place: Megan Gannon, “Anguish prevails over gold mining after historic storm”

 

 

 

Best Reporting on Health

Second place: Megan Gannon, “Dentists fear state’s Medicaid policy changes may delay kids’ care”

Judges comments: “Dental health is often ignored, but some say all health depends on our teeth. This article highlighted the difficulties of getting good dental care off the road system and the bumbling bureaucracy that manages it."

 

Best Reporting on Science:

Second place: Megan Gannon, “Beaver colonization around Nome is harbinger of Arctic changes”

Judges comments:  Nuanced reporting, with a variety of perspectives (scientific, subsistence, regulatory). I love the inclusion of the fieldwork effort in consultation with local communities, the existential questions around beaver mitigation, and the detail that beaver meat tastes “faintly of willows.” Way to highlight the science being done in Western Alaska.

Best Short Feature

Third place: Megan Gannon, “Builders of Nome celebrates 50-year anniversary”

Judges comments: A humorous profile of unusual local characters. It makes readers feel as if they know the brothers who run the unusual hardware store.

 

 

 

 

2021

Best Alaska weekly newspaper

2015

Best Feature Photo, first place: Nils Hahn, "Midday Run"

Best News Photo, first place: Nils Hahn "Lost seal pup wanders into Nome"

Best Sports Reporting, first place: Keith Conger, "Run up Norton Sound coast sets stage for Iditarod finish"

Best Short Feature, first place: Keith Conger, "Iditarod veterinarian crew quietly ensures safety of canine athletes"

Best Sports Feature, first place: Keith Conger, "East-West global circumnavigator arrives in Nome"

Best Profile, second place: Maisie Thomas, "How Nome's Paul Kudla became Santa Paul"

Best Education Reporting, second place: Maisie Thomas, "Potential bill could close small Alaskan schools"

 

2014

Best Sports News story, first place: Diana Haecker “Dallas Seavey winds second Iditarod Championship”

Best Sports Game/Event story, first place Diana Haecker “Iditarod 42 is underway”

Best Sports Game/Event story, second place Keith Conger “Collins first to emerge from fog at 36th AnvilMountain Run”

Best Environmental Reporting, Diana Haecker “DEC looks for innovative water and sewer solutions”

 

2013

 Best Breaking News; Diana Haecker: Fairbanks Climber breaks legs, rescued from Mt. Osborn

What the judge had to say: Nice detail and reporting.

 Best General News story: Diana Haecker: Botched rescue raises questions

What the judges had to say: Doing what newspapers do best: Thinking of the questions and holding officials’ feet to the fire

Best Government or politics reporting: Diana Haecker; Watershed Alliances fight bill aimed to streamline DNR permitting process

 

2013

Best Business Reporting: Diana Haecker: Gold resort offers real mining experience to visitors

Judge’s comments: Turning a Nome gold mine into a tourist mecca can’t be easy. This story offers us the tale of how one mining family made that happen.

Best Government or Policital reporting: Diana Haecker: Alaska Sea Party outspent in battle over Ballot Measure 2

Best News Photo: Diana Haecker: Historic— The US Coast Guard icebreaker Healy and the Russian tanker T/V Renda parked in the Nome roadstead made history when they delivered 1.3 million gallons of fuel to Nome in the midst of winter.

Judges comments: First place goes to a dramatic picture that tells the story— a vast expanse of ice and two ships that managed to cut through it and deliver fuel. The crop and layout of this photo added to its impact as did the elevated viewpoint. I’m glad the ships don’t dominate the frame. Readers really get a good perspective as to the scale of the job they had to do bein seeing them small against all of the ice. Nice work.

Best Online Video Journalism: Diana Haecker, Nils Hahn: Historic winterfuel delivery to Nome.

First place overall  in the category “Best Environmental Reporting”.
The story is labeled “Coastal Management dies in House”, written by The Nome Nugget staff reporter Diana Haecker. 
Here is what the judges had to say:
“The reporter went deep to explain the consequences of a legislative decision to deregulate coastal management - and to show how it happened. The writing was clear and done with authority -- and will help the newspaper's readers better understand an important decision by their elected leaders.”

 


 

First place in the category “Best General News Story”
for the entry “Nome recovers after super storm”, written by The Nome Nugget staff reporter Diana Haecker.
Here is what the judges had to say:
“Although poorly served by its headlines, Nome Recovers, this story about the preparations for approaching storm and the damage it caused includes impressive details. Diana Haecker touched all the bases. The text and art work well together.”

 


2012

First place in the category “Best Sustained Coverage” for the entry “Winter fuel delivery for Nome”,
written by The Nome Nugget staff reporter Sandra L. Medearis.
Here is what the judges had to say:
“A comprehensive report on an important subject. The Nugget's coverage, I'm sure, offered a real public service in keeping Nome residents abreast of developments. It's rare for a "local" story to span an ocean and several countries.”

 


 

First place in the category “Best Weekly Newspaper”
Here is what the judge, Cheryl Thompson, Emmy and Pulitzer price winning journalist with the Washington Post, had to say:
“Amazing front page photos, great layout. Bravo! How can I subscribe?”

 


 

This year’s Alaska Press Club Howard Rock/Tom Snapp First Amendment Award
goes to a Nome journalist who works tirelessly to advocate on behalf of her community’s right to know. As a fearless, unapologetic journalist, Nancy McGuire (editor and owner of the The Nome Nugget) has been unafraid to use the press freedoms afforded by the First Amendment to tackle controversial issues in a small frontier town in remote Alaska.

 

The Nome Nugget

PO Box 610
Nome, Alaska 99762
USA

Phone: (907) 443-5235
Fax: (907) 443-5112

www.nomenugget.net

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