UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State student journalists had a strong showing in the 2016 Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) Region 1 Mark of Excellence Awards competition, earning nine first-place finishes including Best All-Around Television Newscast. In addition, Penn State had four finalists recognized.
“Centre County Report” (Oct. 21, 2016) highlighted Penn State’s winners receiving the award for Best All-Around Television Newscast. The awards were announced at the regional conference in New York City.
"It's great to see our journalism students having success in a wide range of categories, from TV to print to online, and in news and sports,” said Steve Kraycik, director of student television and online operations. “Their hard work continues to be recognized both regionally and nationally. We're also proud to have a growing Society of Professional Journalists chapter here at Penn State."
The awards recognize the best work in college journalism and include categories for print, radio, television and online collegiate journalism. The winners advance for consideration in the national competition.
Winning entries:
- Best All-Round Television Newscast: “Centre County Report” (Oct. 21, 2016) – “Centre County Report” Staff
- Television In-Depth Reporting: “The Refugee Crisis in Greece” – “Centre County Report in Greece” Staff
- Breaking News Photography: “Riot Control” – Arif Aminuddin
- Television News and Feature Photography: “Victoria Square” – Scott Cikowski
- Television Sports Reporting: "Athens' Olympic Legacy: After the Games" - Kristen Garrone
- Television Sports Photography: "Keeping Up With Beaver Stadium" – Lesly Salazar
- Online Sports Reporting: "Superstar" – Anna Pitingolo
- Online Feature Reporting: "Politics 24/7" – Matt Martell
- In-Depth Reporting: "My Number Was F5637" – Carter Walker
School divisions for the competition were based on enrollment, which includes both graduate and undergraduate students. Penn State competed in the large school division against other programs with at least 10,000 students. Region 1 includes Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Central/Eastern Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont.
National winners will be notified later this spring and will be recognized during the Excellence in Journalism conference Sept. 7-9 in Anaheim, California.