Miami reporter Cortney Danielle Moore wins two first-place Sunshine State Awards again

Cortney Danielle Moore of the South Florida Business Journal earned two first-place honors and a finalist nod at the 2026 Sunshine State Awards for reporting published in 2025. The repeated wins underscore her coverage of South Florida’s hospitality, retail and lifestyle economy, including autonomous robots, AI pricing, and shifts in dining and leisure spending.

Why it matters: - Moore’s repeat wins show sustained recognition for reporting on the business forces shaping South Florida’s daily life. - The honors span hospitality, retail, restaurants, tourism and consumer trends, areas central to the region’s economy. - The awards also reinforce the South Florida Business Journal’s role in covering the industries driving Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Palm Beach County.

What happened: - Cortney Danielle Moore, a Miami-based hospitality reporter for the South Florida Business Journal, won two first-place awards at the 2026 Sunshine State Awards. - SPJ Florida presented the awards Aug. 29 at ArtServe in Fort Lauderdale. - Moore placed first in Beat Reporting – Business & Consumer Affairs and Beat Reporting – Lifestyle, Culture & Trends. - Moore also finished as a finalist in Beat Reporting – Food & Travel. - Moore’s work was published in 2025.

The details: - Moore’s Business & Consumer Affairs reporting examined autonomous robots in South Florida hospitality, retail and restaurant operations. - Her coverage also looked at AI-powered pricing used by a regional supermarket chain. - Moore reported on federal regulatory changes affecting compounded GLP-1 weight loss drugs. - One of the stories followed “Weight Loss Injections Boom,” a piece that helped her win the category the year before. - In Lifestyle, Culture & Trends, Moore covered the business side of how South Floridians spend on leisure. - Her reporting included fractional yacht ownership as an alternative to buying a boat outright. - Moore also examined businessman Wayne Boich’s push to expand padel beyond a luxury niche. - She reported on multimillion-dollar restaurant renovation spending aimed at staying competitive in South Florida. - Her Food & Travel finalist work focused on the region’s hospitality and tourism industries. - That finalist reporting included Miami’s Korean dining market, the restaurant revival on Fort Lauderdale’s Las Olas Boulevard, and economic and political pressures affecting travel to South Florida. - Moore’s fractional yacht ownership reporting also helped the South Florida Business Journal earn finalist recognition in the Special Publication or Section category. - SPJ Florida’s Sunshine State Awards recognize excellence across print, broadcast, audio, photography and digital journalism.

Between the lines: - The repeated wins suggest Moore has built a strong niche at the intersection of business reporting and lifestyle coverage. - The award results point to a broader editorial shift in which consumer behavior, hospitality and luxury trends are treated as business news. - The recognition also highlights how South Florida’s restaurant, tourism and leisure industries are increasingly shaped by technology, regulation and investment.

What's next: - Moore said the awards feel especially meaningful because they came after her first-place sweep in the same two categories last year. - Moore said business and lifestyle journalism work together because many of the most interesting business stories are really about how people eat, travel, shop and live. - The full list of winners is available here. - More information about the awards is available at SPJ Florida. - Moore lives in Miami and continues to cover South Florida’s restaurant, lifestyle, hotel, retail and tourism industries. - Before joining the Business Journal in October 2023, Moore worked for Fox News Digital, FOX Business, Black Bride Magazine, Tom’s Guide, Laptop Mag, B&H Explora, Byrdie, The Glow Edit by Glow Recipe and The Knot.