PDI’s H’wood columnist wins top prize in journalism tilt

Ruben Nepales MAXWELL ASTON

Inquirer Entertainment’s California-based columnist Ruben V. Nepales won the top prize at the recent Los Angeles Press Club’s 60th Southern California Journalism Awards held at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in LA.

The columnist won for a two-part story on actress-activist Angelina Jolie, published by the Inquirer on Sept. 7, 2017.

“I finally won first prize … I am extra proud because I won over big guns in journalism—two entries from the Los Angeles Times, and one each from LA Weekly and Bloomberg Businessweek,” Nepales told the Inquirer.

In the entertainment news or feature category (for newspapers with a circulation of over 50,000), his story, “Angelina Jolie talks about her ‘very difficult year,’” beat Los Angeles Times’ “Music rolls on at Folsom Prison 50 years after Johnny Cash made history” and “In striking shift, Dudamel issues plea to homeland,” as well as LA Weekly’s “How Eagles of Death Metal’s Jesse Hughes made peace with the Paris attacks” and Bloomberg Businessweek’s “Hollywood is scrambling to replace Chinese funding.”

This is the first time he competed in the category, through the sole non-American publication entry, Nepales related: “I am honored to represent PDI and the Philippines … and win in this field, the only foreign entry amid entries by journalism institutions in Los Angeles.”

In last year’s Southern California Journalism Awards, he won third prize in the best columnist or critic (foreign correspondents) category for “Mel Gibson turns his life around,” which was published by the Inquirer on Oct. 28, 2016.

Nepales’ column, Only IN Hollywood, appears thrice a week in the Inquirer’s print and online editions. —OLIVER PULUMBARIT