McKnight’s Senior Living editorial staff members were honored May 16 for the wide variety of high-quality content they produce for their audience when they were announced as winners in the Best Range of Work by a Media Brand category at the 2025 Jesse H. Neal Awards ceremony. The award is the highest honor specifically for a media brand in the competition.

The Neal Awards, often referred to as the Pulitzer Prizes of business-to-business publishing, were presented at The Yale Club in New York City. The 2025 honors recognize work published in 2024.

The judges said they were impressed by the “variety of media choices on different platforms” that McKnight’s Senior Living editorial staff members and others produce for senior living professionals.

The award recognizes the work of McKnight’s Senior Living Editor Lois A. Bowers and Content Editor Kimberly Bonvissuto as well as McKnight’s Editorial Director John O’Connor and Special Projects Coordinator Foster Stubbs, and writer Kathleen Steele Gavin. Additionally, Bill Fitzpatrick, senior producer of podcasts for Haymarket Media, produced Bowers’ podcast interview with journalist, humorist and history buff Mo Rocca, which was part of the brand’s entry.

In addition to the podcast, McKnight’s Senior Living’s entry included news articles, columns and other content on mcknightsseniorliving.com and in the print magazine, videos, editorial-related social media posts and more.

“This award is well-deserved and a reflection of the high regard in which McKnight’s Senior Living is held,” said Craig Roth, vice president and group publisher of the McKnight’s brands. “The Neal Awards are the highest honors in business-to-business journalism, so it’s fitting that they’d honor Lois and the rest of the editorial team for their efforts to keep senior living professionals informed every day so they can be successful in their work. Our brand and senior living owners and operators are fortunate to have their contributions.”

SIIA President Chris Mohr said that the awards “represent the pinnacle of editorial distinction within B2B journalism, showcasing the finest contributions across various industries.”

McKnight’s Senior Living also was recognized during the ceremony as a finalist in the Best News Coverage category for a series of articles written last year by Bowers and Bonvissuto as the threat of federal regulation of the assisted living industry became a recurring theme.

McKnight’s Senior Living previously was a finalist in the 2018 Neal Awards competition, the only other year the brand entered the contest, in the Best Website category.

The 2025 competition marks the third time in as many years that a brand in the McKnight’s family has won a Neal Award. In 2024, Bowers’ counterpart on sister media brand McKnight’s Long-Term Care News, James M. Berklan, was recognized in the Best Commentary category. In 2023, O’Connor, who as editorial director oversees McKnight’s Senior Living, McKnight’s Long-Term Care News and McKnight’s Home Care, also won in the Best Commentary category.

Over the course of her career, Bowers’ work has earned two other Neal Awards and five additional finalist nods.

Overall, Haymarket Media had an impressive nine entries that made it to finalist status in 2025. In addition to McKnight’s Senior Living’s winning entry and finalist this year, Haymarket Media had seven other finalists:

• McKnight’s Home Care in the Best Commentary category for columns written by McKnight’s Home Care Editor Liza Berger.
• McKnight’s Long-Term Care News in the Best Series category for articles written by McKnight’s Long-Term Care News Senior Editor Kimberly Marselas.
• MM+M in the Best Range of Work by a Single Author category for work by MM+M Editor-at-Large Marc Iskowitz.
• MM+M in the Best Single Issue of a Tabloid/Newspaper/Magazine category.
• PR Week in the Best Podcast category.
• PR Week in the Best Range of Work by a Media Brand category.
• Rare Disease Advisor in the Best Range of Work by a Single Author category for work by  Rare Disease Advisor Senior Correspondent Larry Luxnor.

Tracing its roots to 1955, the Neal Awards program, now presented by the Software & Information Industry Association, celebrates excellence in business-to-business journalism. The awards are named after Jesse H. Neal, the first managing director of American Business Media, which originated the contest and merged with SIIA in 2013.From hundreds of submitted entries, the 71st Neal Awards recognized 63 winners across 27 categories. Additionally, four individuals received special recognition awards. A list of all 2025 finalists and winners is posted online.

Neal Award winner Lois Bowers at the 71st annual Neal Awards for editorial excellence in NYC in May.