John Cole is a stalwart of local journalism, having worked as a reporter, graphic designer and cartoonist for newspapers in Kentucky, North Carolina and Pennsylvania. Of his current job at The Times-Tribune, Cole says "Scranton and environs present a target-rich environment for political cartoonists, given the region’s history of official corruption, mismanagement and flat-out incompetence." His work won the Fischetti Award in 2004.
[Throughout his life, Rex Babin championed those who focused on state and local issues in editorial cartoons, a field that he and other cartoonists felt was regularly overlooked by journalism contests. The "Rex Babin Memorial Award for Excellence in Local Cartooning" was launched in 2017 to celebrate those working in this niche. To that end, we will be showcasing each cartoonist who entered the contest this year, one or two each day in alphabetical order (more or less), leading up to the AAEC Convention in Sacramento, CA, and the announcement of the award winner on Saturday, Sept. 22.]
