The Clinton Chronicle is the 2nd Best small-circulation newspaper in the state, according to independent judges of the South Carolina Press Association’s 2026 Contest.
Awards were presented Friday in Columbia.
The Manning Times, which is The Chronicle’s sister newspaper in Clarendon County, was judged 1st; the Laurens County Advertiser, which prints The Chronicle each week, was judged 3rd.
Chronicle Editor Vic MacDonald received 3 individual awards:
Breaking News, 3rd place, for an article about the burial at Pinelawn in Clinton of a World War II veteran, T-Sgt Clarence E. Gibbs, whose remains were found decades later in Europe;
Spot Sports Story, 2nd place, for the Lady Red Devils’ run to the State Final Four in basketball, played in Florence in 2025;
General News Photo, 1st place Division E & F Combined, for a picture of Chris Hines holding his daughter, Kinsley, at the trial of an illegal immigrant whose recklessness killed his daughter Madison Hines in a two-vehicle wreck outside of Laurens.
The judge said, “The photo’s content, a father lovingly holding his daughter during sentencing for the death of a relative, made this photo stand out.”
A community journalist in South Carolina for more than 50 years, MacDonald has received 48 individual or team-member awards since he joined The Chronicle staff in 2012.
The Chronicle’s 2nd place for General Excellence was based on issues of March 5 (top content: Kaden Moses death-protest & Team Clinton wins 2025 SC Science Olympiad) and Sept. 24 (top content: House of Pizza sign approval & David Stumbo announces for state attorney general).
The Chronicle won 1st Place in General Excellence in its small newspaper category in 2019.
Love Like Maddie here.
