The American Gem Society will be celebrating the 5th anniversary of the Richard T. Liddicoat Journalism Awards, honouring winners of the 2008 Richard T. Liddicoat™ Journalism Awards at the Society’s Ninth Annual Circle of Distinction dinner on July 29.

The honours to be presented - Jennifer Heebner and Carrie Soucy by JCK Luxury Magazine in the Industry/Trade Reporting category for “Seal of Disapproval”, Russell Shor in the Trade Journal category, for the Gems & Gemology feature “From Single Source to Global Free Market: the Transformation of the Cultured Pearl Industry.” Winners were selected for their exceptional contribution and understanding of gemology and the jewellery industry, and who uphold the Society’s ideals of ethics, education, and consumer protection. The winning entries are acknowledged with a $1,500 cash prize and an etched crystal award inscribed with the author’s name. The American Gem Society also makes a $1,000 contribution to the Richard T. Liddicoat Scholarship Fund at GIA in the name of each winning article.

Heebner and Soucy presented an article on “Seal of Disapproval,” from the Winter 2008 issue of JCK Luxury Magazine. Shor’s article, “From Single Source to Global Free Market: The Transformation of the Cultured Pearl Industry,” appeared in the Fall 2007 issue of Gems & Gemology. Shor is a two-time Liddicoat Award winner who was acknowledged in the Industry/Trade Reporting category in 2006, and is the only author to have fully documented these changes in print.

The AGS will also induct industry leaders John J. Kennedy, Hugh Glenn, and Anna Martin into its Circle of Distinction during the award ceremony.

The Richard T. Liddicoat Journalism Awards were founded in 2003 in remembrance of “The Father of Modern Gemology.” Liddicoat has been president of the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) and editor-in-chief of Gems & Gemology, which was first published by GIA under his leadership. He has authored Handbook of Gem Identification - a standard for gemological research.