The Eagle scoops 4th straight best-overall title
Consistently committed to journalistic excellence.
That is how journalism Instructor and Adviser of The Eagle Michael D. Kennedy described the student newspaper staff after it captured its fourth straight “Best in Overall Excellence” title in the newspaper division of the Nebraska Collegiate Media Association’s annual Golden Leaf Awards, presented Saturday this year at Hastings College.
The Eagle’s website, csceagle.com, captured second place in “Excellence in Digital Medium,” the association’s highest honor in its digital medium division. (See related story, page 4)
“Of course I am proud of them; who wouldn’t be,” Kennedy said about The Eagle staff. “For them to be judged the best, four years in a row, well, I cannot say enough about their commitment to providing the best public service they can to their readers.”
The newspaper division’s competition is broken into 19 individual categories covering writing and visual presentation, such as design, layout and photography. To be eligible, entries must have been published between March 1, 2013, and Feb. 28 this year.
Students from the NCMA’s eight member schools who competed this year earned points for their respective newspapers for placing first (5 points), second (3 points) or third (1 point) in each of those 19 categories. Honorable mentions do not earn points. The points each student earns are then totaled to determine which newspaper earns the title, “Best in Overall Excellence.”
The Eagle staff entered 18 of the 19 categories; it did not submit entries in the Investigative/In-Depth Reporting category. Eleven different students scored points in 16 of the 18 categories they entered, earning eight first places, eight second places and seven third places, for a cumulative score of 71 points.
The Wayne Stater, Wayne State College, finished second in the best overall category with 44 points and The Doane Owl, Doane College, Crete, finished third with 35 points.
Managing Editor Ashley Swanson, senior of Byron, led The Eagle staff with nine individual awards – two honorable mentions; five third places, a second place, and first place in sports photography.
“I’ve been here for the four years we’ve earned first place, and every year I’ve watched us grow and improve both as a staff and paper,” Swanson, said. “I’m incredibly proud of the staff and all the time and effort they put into our product.”
Former Executive Editor, T.J. Thomson, of Golden, Colo., who graduated in May 2013, earned six individual awards – an honorable mention; three second places, and two first places. He shared one of those first-place wins, for the Hard News/Spot News reporting, with reporter Celeste Lee, senior of Chadron, and Photo Editor Teri Robinson, junior of Alliance.
Robinson also earned first place in news photography for her picture of a campus drug bust.
The Eagle swept the Advertisement Design category, with Advertising Director Arielle Boone, senior of Buffalo, Wyo., capturing first and third places, while former ad director Kristina Harter of Colorado Springs, Colo., who also graduated in May 2013, took second place.
Robert “Spike” Jordan, who served as opinion editor in spring 2013, and managing editor in fall 2013 and part of this term, earned three awards – an honorable mention and second place in editorial writing, and first place in editorial cartoon.
In her first NCMA competition, freshman Sports Editor Jordyn Hulinsky of St. Paul, earned second place in Sports Reporting and shared an honorable mention with Swanson in Hard News/Spot News reporting.
Another newcomer, Leala A. Lewis, sophomore of Chadron, captured first place in Feature Writing.
Rounding out the scoring, The Eagle captured three staff awards, including first place in the Overall Layout & Design category. In the Series/Special Section/Edition category the staff captured second and third place for its winter storm Atlas and presidential inauguration special editions respectively.
All judging was performed by professionals outside of Nebraska. Robert Sharp & Associates advertising agency, Rapid City, S.D., judged the Advertisement Design category; Alan Vitello, freelance cartoonist of Denver, judged the Cartoon category. Wayne Thomas, of Powell, Wyo., a freelance photographer and Associate Chair of the National Press Photographer’s Association’s Region 9, judged the Feature Photograph and Photo Illustration categories.
The remaining 15 categories were judged by professional editors from The Topeka (Kansas) Capital-Journal; The Gazette, Billings, Mont.; The Rapid City (S.D.) Journal; The Star-Tribune, Casper, Wyo.; The Tribune-Eagle, Cheyenne, Wyo.; The Gazette, Colorado Springs, Colo.; and The Coloradoan, Fort Collins, Colo.
“I think it is important, highly important, that our students know, and that our readers know, just exactly who it is that is judging the staff’s work,” Kennedy said. “It also is important to note that our consistent performance in the best overall category has been going on for six years, now. I think few people remember that, in addition to the four consecutive first places, The Eagle finished second in the Best in Overall Excellence category in 2009 and 2010.”
Kennedy also pointed out that the success of The Eagle goes beyond the student newsroom.
“The consistent high marks we receive from the very professionals who might hire our students points directly to the quality, credibility and consistency of two things – the high standards our students employ in producing The Eagle and csceagle.com,” Kennedy said, “and equally important, the high standards of the academic program in the department in which The Eagle is stabled.”