The Alliance of Area Business Publishers has named Worcester Business Journal Managing Editor Eric Casey as its Journalist of the Year, one of five AABP awards WBJ won on Tuesday, including a bronze award in the Best Newspaper category.
“Receiving this award from AABP is a huge honor,” Casey said. “The recognition of the work I’ve done to help keep the Central Massachusetts business community informed means a lot to me. I want to thank WBJ and New England Business Media for making this possible.”
In addition to Casey’s win, WBJ was honored for its editorials, coverage of breaking news, design, and overall excellence at AABP’s 2026 summer conference in Wilmington, North Carolina. All of WBJ’s awards were in the medium-sized newspaper category. AABP is an industry association of nearly 60 publications throughout the U.S., Canada, and Australia, in markets including New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, Des Moines, and Arkansas.
“Awards are not our primary motivation, but it is delightful to be recognized in this way by our peers,” WBJ Editor Brad Kane said. “I’m proud of the work WBJ does every single day, and I’m especially proud of Eric Casey as one of the best business journalists in the country.”
Judges from the University of Missouri School of Journalism highlighted Casey’s investigative reporting on Charles “Chip” Norton’s bankruptcy and his comprehensive real estate coverage in the “Money on the sidelines” article. They cited his breaking news coverage of the attempted closures of the Job Corps centers in Grafton and Devens, along with the feature story “Revolutionary collapse: The rise and fall of the once-largest cannabis employer in Central Mass.”
“Casey writes about economic trends, personalities, opportunities and realities with a clear eye and a thorough command of reporting skills,” the judges wrote. “His writing takes a sturdy, no-frills approach, and he excels in finding ways to connect with readers through examples, solid data and smart analysis.”
WBJ won the bronze award for third place in the Best Newspaper category. Its sister publications Hartford Business Journal won the gold award for first place and Mainebiz won the silver award for second place, as their parent company New England Business Media swept all three places in the top category in the contest. Mainebiz won eight total awards, and HBJ won six.
“The publication offers important, explanatory stories with national context and strong deep dive features that tackle important local stories, such as those on skyscrapers, hospitals and cannabis,” the judges wrote about WBJ. “The paper shows good community leadership with its spotlight on how local businesses continue to value diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.”
In addition to Journalist of the Year and bronze for Best Newspaper, WBJ other awards were:
- Kane and former WBJ publisher Peter Stanton won the gold award for Best Editorial for their critique of the former Cannabis Control Commission in the “High drama at the CCC is bad for business” editorial.
- Former staff writer Mica Kanner-Mascolo won the gold award in the category Best Coverage of Local Breaking News for her story “Clark University to lay off up to 30% of faculty, significantly restructure degree tracks amid financial strain.”
- Former art director Mitchell Hayes won the silver award in the category Best Overall Design.
“When design fosters such a personal connection, it’s sure to leave a lasting and timeless impression on its readers,” the judges wrote of Hayes’ designs.
