Campus media receive journalism awards

Student journalists for the Student Voice and WRFW at UW-River Falls have been recognized for their work by Wisconsin’s two leading professional media organizations.

Both the Wisconsin Newspaper Association (WNA) and the Wisconsin Broadcasters Association (WBA) held their annual conventions at the end of February. Among events at the convention were ceremonies awarding the best in professional and student journalism in the state.

In the Collegiate Better Newspaper Contest sponsored by the WNA Foundation, the Student Voice won three awards for articles published during 2013. The weekly newspaper earned a first place for best editorial. The editorial chastised the Student Senate for not representing students professionally. Ashley (Goettl) Hanley, who graduated last year and now works as a reporter for KEYC-TV in Mankato, Minn., earned second place in general reporting for her story about a UWRF professor acquitted of a sexual assault charge. Jonathan Reid, a professional writing major, earned third place in column writing for his remembrance of Professor Meseret Reta, a journalism adjunct who died of cancer in Nov. 2012.

In the WBA Student Awards for Excellence, a former and a current reporter for WRFW were honored for their radio news reports. Christopher Liermann, a 2013 graduate who majored in journalism, earned first place for a sports story about the UWRF swimming and diving team’s effort to find a new coach. Liermann also was awarded first place for sports programming for radio with his hockey pre-game show. Journalism major Maddie Berg’s story on the opening of “CHICAGO The Musical” on the UWRF campus received second place recognition.

The Student Voice and WRFW are student-run campus media organizations supported primarily by student fees and advised by faculty in the Department of Journalism. The faculty advisor for the Student Voice is Associate Professor Andris Straumanis, while the news department of WRFW is advised by Professor Sandy Ellis, chair of the department.

For further information, contact Professor Sandy Ellis, chair of the Journalism Department, at (715) 425-3169 or sandra.ellis@uwrf.edu, or Associate Professor Andris Straumanis, andris.straumanis@uwrf.edu.