News & Publications
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Nov. 13, 2009
PEOPLE ASSISTANT MANAGING EDITOR CYNTHIA SANZ RECEIVES 2009 CMA MEDIA ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
NASHVILLE – Veteran print journalist Cynthia Sanz, Assistant Managing Editor for PEOPLE, received the 2009 CMA Media Achievement Award during the CMA Awards Media-Publicist Brunch leading up to the 2009 CMA Awards. Sanz was presented the CMA Media Achievement Award by Warner Bros. recording artist Blake Shelton.
“It’s such an honor to be recognized by the Country Music community,” said Sanz. “I love the music and I love covering it. To be able to offer our readers a peek inside the lives of so many talented, creative people is both a joy and a privilege. The people who make the music have not only opened their doors to us, they’ve opened their hearts and I look forward to sharing their stories for years to come.”
During the presentation, Shelton humorously praised Sanz’s skills, saying “Cindy took a redneck with bad hair and a beer gut and turned him into one of PEOPLE’s sexiest bachelors of the year.” Shelton was named by the magazine as one of the sexiest men of 2008.
The CMA Media Achievement Award was established to recognize outstanding achievements in the media as they relate to Country Music. Print and Internet journalists, columnists, authors, editors, syndicated radio reporters, television writers, producers and bookers are eligible to win this award.
CMA member publicists nominate media candidates for consideration. The top five nominees are collected and sent to the publicist panel for a second round of voting. The overall winner is presented to the CMA Awards and Recognition Committee for approval before being voted on by the CMA Board of Directors.
“Cynthia is very deserving of this honor,” said CMA Vice President of Communications Wendy Pearl. “In addition to finding multiple ways to cover Country Music artists and CMA events in the regular weekly issues of PEOPLE, she also breaks news on PEOPLE.com and oversees the successful PEOPLE Country franchise. In addition, Cynthia has grown and maintained strong relationships based on integrity and respect with artists and publicists in our industry.”
Sanz graduated from the University of Texas at Austin, and worked as a news clerk for The New York Times from 1985-1986. She spent three years as a feature writer at the Dallas Morning News before starting with PEOPLE in 1989. In addition to her regular duties, she also serves as Editor for PEOPLE Country, which is scheduled to grow in distribution. She is celebrating her 20th year with PEOPLE in 2009.
Past winners of the CMA Media Achievement Award include:
1982 Jack Hurst
1983 Neil Hickey
1984 Dolly Carlisle
1985 Red O’Donnell
1986 No Award
1987 Dave Zimmerman
1988 Bob Oermann
1989 Bob Claypool
1990 Dick Heard
1991 No Award
1992 Mark McEwen
1993 Lynn Lester
1994 Judy Massa
1995 Clay Smith
1996 Tisi Aylward
1997 Jay Orr
1998 Chet Flippo
1999 Hazel Smith
2000 Neil Pond
2001 Harry Chapman
2002 Jim Patterson
2003 Denise Quan
2004 Alanna Nash
2005 Mark Bracco
2006 Donna Hughes
2007 Storme Warren
2008 Monica Escobedo
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