The category winners, who each will receive at least a $2,000 cash prize from a total prize pool of at least $60,000, will be presented in an awards ceremony on September 3 at Lion’s Independent News Sustainability Summit in St. Louis, Missouri.
Going Local Media is one of 51 member organizations recognized from 239 submitted entries. The 2025 program centers around excellence in developing and executing Lion’s pillars of sustainability including journalistic impact, financial health, and operational resilience.
Finalist in the Community Engagement Category
In the “Community Engagement, Micro Tier” category, Going Local Long Island was recognized for its “Going Local Weeks” program, which was initiated this year starting in Islip, extending into Huntington, and will continue throughout Long Island towns in the coming months.
The Lion judges noted:
“Going Local Weeks on Long Island” is a grassroots initiative launched by Going Local Long Island and local business Jackson Hall to support local businesses with marketing and outreach. After helping a neighborhood BBQ place remain open, the duo decided to take the initiative island-wide. Through “Going Local Week,” small and local businesses offer unique incentives that are promoted for free on goinglocalweek.com, resulting in increased foot traffic and sales at these shops.
Going Local Media Co-Founder Melissa Farrell said, “Our mission has always been to support local – businesses, organizations, meaningful events – however we can through our digital and social platforms, and we’re so proud to know that our professional peers in local independent media recognize and celebrate our efforts!”
Long Island News Coverage of Going Local Week in Islip
Sponsors include the Carol Oppenheim and Jerome S. Lamet Charitable Fund, Google, The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, RJI, BlueLena, Democracy Fund, The Lenfest Institute, Spot-On, The Associated Press Fund for Journalism (APFJ), Flying Comet Games, and The New York Times.
Evangeline Knell is a 3-time Prime Time Creative Arts Emmy nominee and Shorty Awards winner for her production and design direction of interactive broadcast television elements for AMC’s “Talking Dead,” Bravo’s “Watch What Happens Live,” and an interactive television execution for Sprint during a live NASCAR race on the TNT network. After a 16-year career with CNN in New York, earning 3 Peabody Awards, her extensive creative and production work has been seen on dozens of broadcast and cable networks and station groups throughout the country.
A proud member of the Board of Trustees of the Heckscher Museum of Art in Huntington and a board member of the Huntington Chamber of Commerce, she is Co-Founder of Going Local Media at goinglocal.li and Executive Producer at goinglocal.tv, built for Long Island local businesses and organizations, and has been the Owner and Creative Director of Identity Digital, a long-based video production and live streaming company since 2019, supporting and amplifying community businesses and organizations through the production of innovative, engaging, and authentic content that resonates with diverse, socially connected audiences.
