CLEWISTON, FL — The Agriculture Institute of Florida honored Palm Beach Post reporter Susan Salisbury with its first annual award for Balanced Media Coverage. Salisbury was recognized for excellence, accuracy and balance in covering agricultural issues.

“Susan Salisbury’s coverage of local Palm Beach County agricultural business news as well as regional, state and national ag news is consistently accurate, objective and balanced,” said Susan Howard, President, Ag Institute.

“We recognize and appreciate the time and effort a reporter takes to research and develop news stories and features, and when stories are accurate and balanced, they help promote better understanding of our industry,” Howard said.

In its award presentation, The Ag Institute commended Salisbury for her concerted efforts to report on agricultural issues and cover the many and complicated facets of local agriculture. Learning firsthand about the industry, Salisbury actively pursued business stories by making farm contacts, attending industry meetings, visiting farms, nurseries and packinghouses and participating in the Ag Institute’s media tour in Palm Beach County earlier this year.

“She respects her sources and has developed a full-blown rolodex of contacts in the agriculture industry. The result of her work is that she has gotten to know us and our industry and its value to the state’s economy and community. Her news stories reflect this knowledge and the journalistic standards of accuracy and balance,” Howard said.

The Agriculture Institute of Florida is a voluntary group of agricultural communicators who represent the state’s diverse agriculture industry. One of the major goals of the Ag Institute is to help educate Floridians about the agricultural industry and its value to the economy and environment. To achieve this goal, the Institute and its individual members work regularly with members of the news media throughout the state.