Yes, we realize this has been on the magazine rack at Whole Foods for days and drove Beltway dinner conversations last weekend – but just like the rest of Washington, we love lists — and this one is now online and linkable .

Washingtonian: 50 Top Journalists 2009

Did Garrett Graff make friends or enemies with this top 50 list?

Was every candidate from the FamousDC Media Ticket also on the Washingtonian’s roll?

Our favorite section is the Dozen Rising Stars :

Jonathan Capehart, Washington Post. A dapper and familiar face to MSNBC viewers, editorial writer Capehart is a reasoned and interesting pundit.

Lindsay Czarniak, WRC-TV. Few local journalists seem destined for more exposure on the national stage than Channel 4’s sports anchor. The only question is where she’ll end up. ESPN? The Today show?

Yunji De Nies, ABC. For the last year, Good Morning America viewers have been rewarded with engaging reports from ABC’s new White House correspondent.

Shane Harris, National Journal. As cyber issues come to the fore, National Journal’s intelligence reporter is hot on the case with compelling narratives and scoops.

Neil Irwin, Washington Post. The Post’s go-to writer over the last year for financial stories had just returned from earning an MBA.

Anne Kornblut, Washington Post. The heir apparent to the Post’s legendary political beat, local girl Kornblut has seen her star rise fast.

Matt Labash, Weekly Standard. In the Washington magazine world, Labash—whose topics range from GOP politicos to a heart-wrenching story on the fall of Detroit—stands out as perhaps the best at the craft of writing.

Jonathan Martin, Politico. A whirling dervish publishing hot stories round the clock on his blog, Martin is one of Politico’s franchise reporters.

Mark Mazzetti, New York Times. The Times was smart to snap up Mazzetti from the ailing LA Times in 2006, and readers have been rewarded with compelling defense coverage.

Chad Pergram, Fox. A star on and off the air, Pergram has the respect of his Capitol Hill peers, not an easy bunch to please.

Alix Spiegel, NPR. Now an expert on science and social policy, Spiegel got her start on the public-radio show This American Life.

Sam Stein, Huffington Post. No less a figure than President Obama welcomed Stein into the club of White House reporters when he called on him during his first press conference.

FamousDC applauds Cathy Merrill Williams, Garrett Graff and all the journos included. We look forward to the next round-up in 2013.