Writing Photojournalism Audio Television Multimedia

2021 Audio Championship

This year, one audio competition was held in the News & Features category. The five top winners from that competition qualified to participate in the Hearst National Audio Championship.

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Championship was held virtually again this year. Finalists met their judges on Zoom meetings and fulfilled their assignments from home.

The assignment: “The County Opens Up: After 14 months of the devastating toll of Covid 19, restrictions on our daily lives and economic hardship for many, the country is opening up. What does that look like? What does it mean? Your assignment is to report on this change from any perspective you choose focused on where you live.”

The first-through-third place winners were awarded scholarships of $10,000, $7,500, and $5,000 respectively.

The two finalists earned $1,500 scholarships each.

An additional $1,000 award for Best Use of Audio for News Coverage was selected from the monthly competition submissions.

The winners and finalists are featured below.