UNC Hussman wins 3rd-straight Hearst Journalism national championship
The UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media has a new banner in its future after winning its third-straight Hearst national championship. And, for the first time ever, the Hearst Foundation awarded the national champions a $25,000 monetary award and announced that award will now go to the national champions each year.
The win brings UNC Hussman’s total to seven national championships — five since 2010 — for the Hearst Journalism Awards Program, more than any other university.
Individual UNC Hussman students also won national championships. Claire Collins, a May 2017 graduate from Burlington, won the multimedia competition. Jessica O’Connor, a May 2017 graduate from Concord, won the radio competition. O’Connor also won the top radio story of the year award.
Mac Snyder, a Fall 2016 graduate from Charlotte, placed third nationally in the photo competition. Casey Toth, a May 2017 graduate from Cary, placed fifth in multimedia, and John Thomas, a May 2017 graduate from Elizabethtown, placed fifth in radio.
“I’m so proud of the sustained excellence of our students on the national stage and the faculty who mentor them,” said Susan King, dean of the school. “In the absence of recognized national rankings for media and journalism schools, we measure ourselves by our students’ success, and it is clear that our students are the leaders for the future of all forms of communication. Our students are on top in journalism, and our students are on top in strategic communication — we also won the top national honor in collegiate public relations this year. The success and momentum of our school is undeniable.”
Often called “the Pulitzers of college journalism,” the Hearst program holds year-long competitions in four categories: broadcast news, multimedia, photojournalism and writing. The categories include five monthly writing competitions, two photojournalism competitions, three broadcast news competitions (one in radio and two in television) and four multimedia competitions — with championship finals in all divisions. The program awards scholarships to students for outstanding performance in college-level journalism, with matching grants to the students’ schools.
“Our student winners this year are carrying forward a proud legacy built by the students — now alumni — who came before them,” said C.A. Tuggle, the school’s senior associate dean for undergraduate studies. “Our faculty, staff, alumni and students are building and sustaining a culture of innovation and leadership in media and journalism.”
The overall intercollegiate winners are those schools with the highest combined student points. In addition to first place overall, UNC Hussman finished second in the broadcast news, multimedia and photojournalism competition categories.
Hearst Journalism Awards Intercollegiate Competition
Overall
- First place: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Broadcast News
- Second place: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- First place: Jessica O’Connor
Multimedia
- Second place: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- First place: Claire Collins
Photojournalism
- Second place: The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Broadcast News (monthly)
Television I: Features
- Seventh place: Maddie Gardner
Radio: News and Features
- Sixth place: Jessica Paulina O’Connor
- Seventh place: John Thomas
Television II: News
- Tenth place: Jaclyn Lee
National Finalists
- Jessica Paulina O’Connor
- John Thomas
Multimedia (monthly)
Multimedia I: Features
- Seventh place: Casey Toth
Multimedia II: News
- Second place: California on Fire by Dillon Deaton
- Fifth place: Voices Together by Claire Collins
Multimedia III: Enterprise Reporting
- Fourth place: Edible Freedom by Casey Toth
- Fifth place: Voices Together by Claire Collins
Multimedia IV: Team Reporting
- First place: The Watchman by Dillon Deaton, Kira Dalman, Alexis Barnes and Janell Smith
- Sixth place: Claire Collins, Cole McCauley, Madison Walls, Lindsay Carbonell, Rob Gourley, Dillon Deaton, Alex Kormann and Vijay Rajkumar
National Finalists
- Claire Collins
- Casey Toth
Photojournalism (monthly)
Photojournalism I: News & Features
- Third place: Dillon Deaton
- Fourth place: Tegan Johnston
Photojournalism II: Picture Stories/Series
- Second place: Mac Snyder
- Fifth place: Robert McCauley
National Finalist
- Mac Snyder
Writing (monthly)
Breaking News
- Third place: C Jackson Cowart