Northwestern News, Students Garner 28 Awards at Annual Conference; Jordan Green Named Division’s Journalist of Year for Second Year
April 21, 2023
Northwestern News staff members pose with award certificates during the Oklahoma Collegiate Media Association Conference in Stillwater on April 13. Attending the event are (left to right) Editor-in-Chief Jordan Green, Senior Reporter Benjamin Kliewer, Features Editor Caitlin Hofen, Adviser Dr. Kaylene Armstrong, Advertising Manager Derrick Galindo and Sports Editor Cade Kennedy. |
The Northwestern News won 28 awards, including 14 first-place awards, during the annual Oklahoma Collegiate Media Association conference on April 13.
The News garnered more awards than any other collegiate newspaper in the Diamond Division, which includes other small universities in Oklahoma. Northeastern State University and the University of Sciences and Arts of Oklahoma also submitted entries in this division.
Editor-in-Chief Jordan Green, Blackwell senior majoring in mass communication, was named the Diamond Division Journalist of the Year for the second year in a row.
Green’s award factored in his reporting and leadership of the Northwestern News, which has earned numerous statewide honors in collegiate newspaper competitions. His application for the award included a selection of stories he has written and an essay about the role a newspaper should play in serving its community.
The conference took place at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater. Collegiate journalists from across the Sooner State heard from guest speakers, discussed their newspapers’ work and accepted awards for work done in the 2022 calendar year.
“The News team is honored and humbled by the kind recognition we’ve received for our student journalism here at Northwestern,” Green said. “We work hard to produce a newspaper that serves our Ranger community, and we’ve remained dedicated to our mission. Although we do not write stories, take pictures and sell advertisements with the goal of winning awards, we are grateful that people appreciate what we do.”
The News won first place in front page design and interior page design. Its enterprise and investigative reporting team – comprised of six students – won first place for their reporting on the university’s scholarship system, including its scholarship cap. The reporting was published in the spring 2022 semester.
The investigative team includes Caitlin Hofen, a senior mass communication major from Alva who serves as the News’ feature and entertainment editor; Dylan Whitely, a December 2022 mass communication graduate from Alva; Joshua Hinton, a senior mass communication major from Pond Creek; Benjamin Kliewer, a senior mass communication major from Mountain View; Austin Morton, a 2022 mass communication graduate; and Jara Reeder, a mass communication senior from Elk City.
Eleven students won first, second or third-place awards for their work at the News. Those students and all of the awards they won are listed below:
FIRST PLACE:
- Colby Dalton, Alva freshman and the News’ former photo editor: news photography, photography portfolio and feature photography
- J.D. Eddy, a graduate student from Tuttle who serves as the News’ editorial editor: editorial writing and sports photography
- Green: Diamond Division 2023 Journalist of the Year, reporting portfolio, general news and reporting, enterprise/investigative reporting individual and column writing
- Hofen: feature writing
- Cade Kennedy, a junior mass communication major from Alva who serves as the News’ sports editor: sports reporting
SECOND PLACE:
- Dalton: feature photography
- Derrick Galindo, a mass communication major from Alva who serves as the News’ advertising manager: advertising
- Hofen: feature writing, reporting portfolio, column writing and enterprise/investigative reporting individual
- Green: news photography
THIRD PLACE:
- Eddy: sports photography
- Galindo: advertising
- Hofen: reviews and feature writing
- Kennedy: sports reporting and column writing
Green congratulated the News team members for their dedication to and passion for journalism.
“The people on the News team are some of my best friends, and I have been blessed to get to work alongside them to provide our campus with high-quality journalism,” Green said. “They have told stories that have made positive differences on our campus and connected our campus through words, photos, advertisements, you name it. I can’t express how awesome this team is. They’re some of the most talented, caring people I have ever known.”
Dr. Kaylene Armstrong, the Northwestern News adviser, said, “I have been fortunate to work with an extremely dedicated staff of students, who have been tireless in their efforts to provide the campus with the best news product possible. These awards validate that work. I am so proud of all of them.”
The News is published on Thursdays throughout the school year and is hiring new staff members for the upcoming school year. Northwestern students do not have to be mass communication majors to work for the paper, which offers paid positions.
To read the latest news, visit https://northwesternnews.rangerpulse.com/.
To learn more about the Northwestern mass communication program, visit www.nwosu.edu/school-of-arts-and-sciences/communication/mass-communication.
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