Star Eagle Publisher Eli Lutgens was named Minnesota’s Young Journalist of the Year by the Society of Professional Journalists during the Minnesota Chapter’s 2024 Page One Awards ceremony held June 18, 2024 at the Lowlands in St. Paul. More than 500 entries were received from media outlets of every medium, including the Star Tribune, Mankato Free Press, Minnesota Public Radio, and many others.
“Lutgens was selected for the essential work he is doing in local, community journalism,” judges commented. “As his recommender noted, there would be no local newsrooms in the communities without his intervention. If running multiple publications wasn’t impressive enough, his dedication to reporting news running from local high school sports to local politics is clearly making a difference in the communities he serves. Simply put, we need more people like Lutgens to step up and do this vital work to sustain and advance democracy. There are fewer ‘news deserts' in Minnesota thanks to Lutgens’ efforts.”
Lutgens started his career in journalism at the age of 15 when he was hired as an editorial assistant to his father Jim at the Star Eagle in New Richland. However, as Eli often says, his life in journalism began the day his dad started working at the Waseca Weekly when Jim was only 20 years old and later, when Jim brought him along to work at the Albert Lea Tribune, something he did often. Simply said, Eli grew up in the back of a newsroom.
In April of 2021, Eli purchased the Star Eagle from his father. Later that year he acquired the Southern Minnesota Golden Link. On July 1, 2022 he began publishing the Waseca County Pioneer.
Eli frequently observes that none of his publications would be sustainable without the ongoing support of the NRHEG and Waseca County Communities, in addition to the help of a dedicated staff of talented writers.
The award given out last Tuesday was Eli’s second “Page One” Award, the first coming in 2021 in the Investigative Journalism Category, another first place finish for his piece on the mishandling of federal funds distributed to local governments under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.