The Star-Ledger, Newark, N.J.

By: Joe Strupp When Jim Willse took over as editor of The Star-Ledger of Newark, N.J., 10 years ago, it had zero Pulitzer Prizes to its name. Since then, the Jersey daily has taken home two in the past four years, including the 2005 breaking news prize for its coverage of last year's surprise resignation of Gov. Jim McGreevey. It has also entered six finalists since 2001. But if you ask Willse, who came to the Garden State in 1995 after editing stints at the San Francisco Examiner and New York's Daily News, his first goal was improving quality, not winning awards. He credits Advance President Donald Newhouse with giving him the resources to beef up staffing and expand features that he claims led to the awards, as well as the paper's statewide dominance.

"We try to be good at all of it, front to back," Willse says. "And if you pull that off, the Pulitzers come along."

Within two years of taking over the top spot, Willse was able to add 50 editorial positions, including two to the statehouse bureau in Trenton that now boasts 12 reporters ? perhaps the most of any statehouse bureau in the country. Observers credit that large outlay with helping the paper beat the competition when McGreevey dropped the bombshell last summer that he was gay, had engaged in an affair, and would step down. "Unlike other states, Trenton is in effect a City Hall for the state," Willse says about the paper's commitment there. "State government [in New Jersey] has more of a stake in peoples' lives than most state governments."

Willse's tenure has also included the creation of the paper's first food section, calendar weekend section, TV book, and additional Sunday editorial sections. He oversaw formation of a new art and graphics department, expanded the paper's library, and switched from an outside photo agency to an inside photo department in 2001 ? the same year the paper won its first Pulitzer, for photography.

"It didn't really feel like they were part of the staff until they were in the building," Rick Everett, managing editor/news, says about the photo change. "Accessibility and knowing they are here has helped." Add to that the paper's strong zoning, focus on local coverage (and large newshole), and editors contend the basics carry the day.

Readers also praise the paper's periodic special reports, on issues such as school test results and graduation rates, and comparable property taxes ? both major issues in this highly taxed state. The annual "School Report Card" offers information such as class size, SAT averages, teacher salaries, and college advancement rates for every public school in the state. "People come to expect a certain amount of substance from us," Willse says of the reports, which can often be found at real estate offices and open houses. "We try to be a complete paper." -- Joe Strupp