UT Student Journalists win regional SPJ Mark of Excellence Awards
Student journalists at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, won several first-place and finalist awards at the annual Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) Region 12 Conference last month.
Award-winning work included stories covering Hurricane Helene and the 2024 presidential election campaign.
Senior journalism and media major and The Daily Beacon Editor-in-Chief Shelby Wright said she is proud of her work on Hurricane Helene, which won in the general news reporting category. She sees the award as another opportunity to spread awareness about the impact of this tragedy.
“I think it shows how important journalism is at the end of the day,” Wright said. “It’s about giving a voice to the voiceless.”
Pierce Gentry, senior journalism and media major and WUOT reporter, was also pleased to see his reporting on Helene won.
“It’s really gratifying to receive acknowledgement from industry professionals on our work on Helene,” Gentry said. “It’s almost like they’re acknowledging the disaster and the people that have been hurt by this tragedy. That was the aim of my work on Helene. To shine a light on the needs of those East Tennessee communities that often don’t get talked about.”
He was also proud to celebrate the accomplishments of his fellow student journalists. Gentry said it is a testament to the students and mentors’ hard work that has transformed the journalism program in recent years.
This year’s SPJ Mark of Excellence Awards winners and finalists from UT are:
Pierce Gentry (WUOT)
Shelby Wright (The Daily Beacon)
Winner, General News Reporting (Large – 9,000+ students) – How Hurricane Helene’s historic destruction has affected communities and students in our own backyard
Kylia Berry (The Volunteer Channel)
Finalist, Television Feature Reporting – Lucky Seven
The Volunteer Channel
Finalist, Best All-Around Television Newscast – Voting Matters: Covering the issues that matter to you
SPJ Region 12 Mark of Excellence award winners are forwarded to the SPJ Mark of Excellence national competition, which will be judged and announced later on in the year.
UT Student Journalists win regional SPJ Mark of Excellence Awards written by Ernest Rollins and originally published on the College of Communication & Information site.