NEWS RELEASE
HEARST TELEVISION BROADCAST NEWS FINALISTS NAMED
The William Randolph Hearst Foundation has announced the student television broadcast finalists selected in the Journalism Awards Program’s Broadcast Features Competition I.
Five television winners, selected from a record 79 entrants from 43 schools, will submit additional entries for a semi-final round of judging (along with five winners from Competition II). Following the semi-finals, five television finalists will be chosen to participate in the Championship in San Francisco, along with the radio, writing, photojournalism and multimedia finalists. The schools of award-winning finalists receive matching grants.
The top television finalists are:
First Place, $2,600 award, JEANNETTE REYES, Kent State University
Second Place, $2,000 award, LEXIE COOK, University of Southern California
Third Place, $1,500 award, NATASHA ZOUVES, University of Southern California
Fourth Place, $1,000 award, DANIEL NELIGH, Arizona State University
Fifth Place, $1,000 award, MICHAEL JOSEPH GAUDINI, Temple University
Sixth Place, certificate, BRENDAN PONTON, University of Maryland
Seventh Place, certificate, TOMMY PARKER, Western Kentucky University
Eighth Place, certificate, GABE GIFFIN, Louisiana State University
Ninth Place, certificate, EMILY FOSTER, University of Montana
Tenth Place, certificate, KELLY SACO, Syracuse University
In addition to Jeannette Reyes, Lexie Cook, Natasha Zouves, and Daniel Neligh, sixth-place winner Brendan Ponton will qualify for the semi-final round, as Michael Gaudini (fifth place) graduated in August 2011.
The judges, all professionals in radio and television, are: Edward Esposito, Vice President, Information Media, Rubber City Radio Group, Akron, OH; Kate O’Brian, Senior Vice President, ABC News, New York, NY; and Fred Young, retired Senior Vice President of News, Hearst Television Inc., Yardley, PA.
The 2011-2012 broadcast news competitions are held in 106 member colleges and universities of the Association of Schools of Journalism and Mass Communication with accredited undergraduate journalism programs. The Broadcast News Competition was added in 1988 to the Hearst Foundation’s Journalism Awards Program that for 52 years has included writing, photojournalism, and multimedia, and now offers awards totaling up to $500,000 in scholarships, matching grants and stipends. Please check the monthly winners section of the Web site for the winning work.
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Contact:
Jan C. Watten, program director
415.908.4565
jwatten@hearstfdn.org