In July, The Laurel Independent was recognized with two awards in the National Newspaper Association Foundation’s Better Newspaper Contest, competing in the non-daily division with a circulation of 2,000 to 3,999.

Joe Murchison received second place in the business story category for his story, “Back to business after the pandemic,” which was featured in the August 2022 issue.

Designers Ashley Perks and Valerie Morris received an honorable mention for the cover of the September 2022 issue of the paper.