General Reporting
First Place: Stephanie Berger, The State Press, Arizona State University.
Second Place: Mindy Lee, The State Press, Arizona State University.
Third Place: Ben Horowitz, The State Press, Arizona State University.
Berger won first place for “becareful.com,” a story about the dangers and risks of social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace.
“Comprehensive coverage of a topic important to everyone, but especially to college students who are often on their own for the first time,” the judges wrote. “Well-written and -researched.”
Second place goes to Lee for ” Business profs earn most.” In the story, Lee analyzes increases in professor pay and discrepancies between departments.
“Good investigative, explanatory piece that has direct interest for the audience; helps identify for the campus community what the school’s priorities are,” the judges wrote.
Horowitz grabbed third place with “Border patrol,” a story about two ASU students riding their bikes along the U.S.-Mexican border and keeping an eye on border watchdog groups like the Minutemen.
“Nice feature treatment of a topical issue that has the whole country in a debate,” the judges wrote.
Overall, the judges added, ” the submissions from Arizona State were in a whole other class from the rest.”
Feature Writing
First Place: Sam Friedman, The State Press, Arizona State University.
Second Place: Megan Irwin, The State Press, Arizona State University.
Third Place: Megan Salisbury, The State Press, Arizona State University.
Friedman earned first place with “Got game?,” a story which explored how on-line gaming can become addictive to some players.
“Fresh and relevant story written and organized with matching flair,” the judges wrote.
Second place goes to Irwin for “Holding onto Hope,” a story about a woman infect with HIV.
“Very well-written and organized,” the judges wrote.
Salisbury took third place with “When Love Hurts.”
The judges called Salisbury’s story, which seeks to dispell stereotypes about domestic violence, a “candid perspective on a perpetually relevant story.”
Sports Reporting
First Place: Kyle Odegard, The State Press, Arizona State Univerity.
Second Place: Scott Oxarart, The Nevada Sagebrush, University of Nevada-Reno.
Third Place (tie): James Schmehl, The State Press, Arizona State University.
Third Place (tie): James Schmehl, The State Press, Arizona State University.
Odegard won first place with “A big ball of hope,” about a university basketball player seeking to go pro.
“This is a great look at a young man’s quest to be a star athlete. It was a close examination of his life, including the highs and the lows and the uncertainty, making it clear that the NBA is a longshot,” the judges wrote.
Second place goes to Oxarart for “If he protects me, then I will do the rest.”
“There’s plenty of emotion here,” the judges wrote about Oxarart’s account of a young boxer who beat the odds to become a champ. “By the end of the story, the reader can’t help but root from the sidelines. A nicely told story.”
Schmehl snagged two third-place honors with “Women in NCAA athletics” and “NFL pros return to classroom.” The first story was about the evolution of women’s collegiate sports and the second was about pro athletes returning to school for their degrees.
“Both stories deserve praise for the ideas and for the execution,” the judges wrote. “The story about the pro football players wasn’t reverential, but it showed that what they’re doing is unusual, while leaving school early is common.”
Judged by Sunday features reporter Pepper Ballard, statehouse/senior reporter Andrew Schotz and reporter/editor Tamela Baker, all of The Herald-Mail in Hagerstown, Md. The contest drew a total of 33 entries.