Miami journalism students win national award

Miami University students in the 2010 journalism spring capstone at Cincinnati Public Radio (WVXU/WMUB) won first place for best in-depth radio reporting from the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) Mark of Excellence competition for their special report, "Tracking Stimulus Dollars in Southwest Ohio."

Throughout the semester, students produced audio and web features on a wide variety of topics under this heading. The three stories recognized by the SPJ are about federal stimulus funding at the Butler County sheriff's department; funding for Head Start early education in Germantown; and funding to build bike paths through Montgomery County.

Emily Atwood, Katie Morgan, Josh Messerly (all 2010 Miami graduates) and Joe Sampson, clinical faculty in the journalism program, will be honored at the SPJ national conference in New Orleans this fall.

The national Mark of Excellence Awards recognizes collegiate work published or broadcast during 2010. There were 12 regions representing all 50 states, with Miami taking top honors. Overall, the competition received 4,100 entries.