World Press Photo honors Powering a Nation in inaugural multimedia contest

“Powering a Nation” – the UNC News21 project about U.S. energy – won second place in the interactive multimedia production category of the 2011 World Press Photo contest in Amsterdam.

It finished ahead of The New York Times epic, “A Year at War,” and behind the category’s winner, “Prison Valley,” a documentary that explores the prison industry.

The multimedia contest was the first for World Press Photo — an organization known for hosting the world’s largest and most prestigious annual press photography contest.

“The World Press Photo Awards have been the gauge of the world's best documentary photography for decades,” said assistant professor and “Powering a Nation” producer Chad A. Stevens. “This year is the inaugural year for multimedia projects in the competition, and so the UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media and Powering a Nation are playing a tremendous role in defining a worldwide standard for quality multimedia storytelling. And that is a legacy that can't be undone.”

Rather than accepting submitted entries, World Press Photo managing director Michiel Munneke said the organization ensured the competition was of the highest quality by convening professionals with backgrounds in photojournalism, documentary filmmaking, multimedia productions and interactive technologies to shortlist finalists. “Powering a Nation” was the only university-affiliated project shortlisted.

“This is an excellent example of advocacy journalism, where the whole package has the potential to educate and raise policy awareness,” said contest jury chairman Ed Kashi, a photojournalist and filmmaker. “Through a combination of strong graphics, a relatively easy to use navigation system, a wide array of content ranging from short narrative linear multimedia pieces, to graphs, photography, maps, games and other interactive elements, the viewer can learn about the issue, get absorbed in the stories and become activated into the issue.”

Lauren Frohne, a 2010 master’s graduate of the school and a “Powering a Nation” managing editor, accepted the award on behalf of the project’s team. “This award is much more than a prize for the students who have produced Powering a Nation over the past two years,” she said. “Our journalism school has made multimedia a focus for many years, ahead of most media outlets and universities, and this is collective recognition of that.”

Frohne said she spoke in Amsterdam with many professionals from around the world who plan to look to UNC for interns and employees now that theyhave seen the caliber of work students from the program produce.

Powering a Nation investigates the political, economic, and scientific tensions behind U.S. energy through multimedia reporting to engage citizens and inspire informed decision-making. The project is funded by News21, a national initiative led by 12 of America’s leading research universities with the support of the Carnegie and Knight foundations to advance the U.S. news business.