The Murray State News won 24 awards at the Kentucky Press Association’s Winter Convention in Bowling Green.
The awards recognize work in news and advertising categories. The Murray State News won 23 awards in the news division and one award in the advertising division in Student Publications 1, the division for schools with under 10,000 enrollment. The News earned second place in the division.
The News claimed eight first place awards, five second place awards, five third place awards and four certificates of merit in the news division. The News received a certificate of merit for a special section in the advertising division.
The Murray State News transitioned from a weekly printed newspaper last academic year to a digital-first model with a monthly printed newspaper. This has required the staff to adapt to a new workflow.
“I’m extremely happy with the work that we have put in over the last year at The News, and I couldn’t be more proud of our entire staff in earning these awards,” said Jakob Milani, a senior journalism major from Herrin, Illinois who serves as co-editor-in-chief and sports editor. “We all have worked really hard, and it’s exciting to see it pay off. I said at the beginning of this year that I wanted to take The News to a better place than it was when I first got here, and these awards are a big step forward in accomplishing our goal. I’m excited to see what the future holds for all of us at The News.”
The News won four awards that involved multimedia or social media, and The News captured four photography awards. Adviser Leigh Landini Wright said she is proud of the staff’s achievement and work under the new model.
“These students also have embraced the digital-first model where stories and photos are posted immediately after an event,” Wright said. “They are invested in producing quality journalism week in and week out. They have embraced new ways of telling stories with audio, video and social media.”
News staffers continue their tradition of a weekly production night for both digital and print edition weeks. “I’m so proud of the work that we have produced at The News,” said Jill Smith, co-EIC/News editor and a graduate student from Murray. “It’s a testament to how much we love sharing stories important to our campus and the community.”
List of winners:
- First place, Jakob Milani, best sports story
- First place, Jakob Milani, best sports feature
- First place, Ava Chuppe, best enterprise/analytical story
- First place, Ava Chuppe, best on-going/extended coverage story
- First place, Ania Boutin, best use of social media or multimedia
- First place, Ania Boutin, best video
- First place, Rebeca Mertins Chiodini, best sports photo
- First place, staff, best special section
- Second place, Ania Boutin, best video
- Second place, Dionte Berry, general news story
- Second place, Jill Smith, best enterprise/analytical story
- Second place, Rebeca Mertins Chiodini, general news photo
- Second place, Sydney Harper, best editorial page
- Third place, Jill Smith, general news story
- Third place, Scottlyn Ballard, best feature story
- Third place, Ania Boutin, best use of social media or multimedia
- Third place, Rebeca Mertins Chiodini, best sports photo
- Third place, staff, best front page
- Certificate of merit, Dionte Berry, breaking news
- Certificate of merit, Jakob Milani, Jill Smith and Dionte Berry, best website
- Certificate of merit, staff, best sports photo essay
- Certificate of merit, Jakob Milani, best sports page/section
- Certificate of merit, staff, best advertising special section
This is the most awards The News has received at KPA since 2020. Wright said the pandemic challenged many student newsrooms, and she is proud of how the students have returned to the newsroom this semester to rebuild The News’ tradition of excellence.
