A student project from the UE ChangeLab examining the impact of COVID-19 on the Midwest recently earned a prestigious journalism award.
A group of University of Evansville (UE) students worked for seven months on a project, presented in the form of a podcast, which delved into challenges faced by underrepresented populations in the Midwest during the COVID-19 pandemic. Students worked with faculty advisors and local National Public Radio affiliate WNIN to research, write, and produce the award-winning piece, "COVID Between the Coasts." The students' work paid off, as they recently received a 2021 Regional Edward R. Murrow Award.
Edward R. Murrow Awards "recognize outstanding journalism bringing clarity and context despite unprecedented threats." Students from two separate ChangeLab courses at the University of Evansville came together to produce a podcast-style piece which met those standards. A news release from UE noted the accomplishment of the students, who worked with faculty members Dr. Tamara Wandel (communications) and Dr. Darrin Weber (mathematics), along with Sarah Kuper, a reporter and producer with WNIN.
One of the students who worked on the project, Nicole Tucker, spoke about the student-led project and the help they received from collaborators. "My classmates and I were able to do everything from research to interviewing and script writing. These were all things that we didn't have a lot of experience in but with the help of our professors and WNIN, we were able to create a successful podcast series," Tucker said.
Kuper emphasized the important contributions of the students in the production of the podcast series, "The research and reporting for our podcast is broader and richer as a result of the ChangeLab students' award-winning work."
The Edward R. Murrow Awards are presented annually by the Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA). According to a release from RTDNA, Chairwoman Andrea Stahlman said of this year’s recipients, "The regional RTDNA Edward R. Murrow Award recipients we announce today produced extraordinary journalism that brought clarity and context to 2020's biggest news stories. The winning work demonstrates dedication, determination and a commitment to the highest ethical standards enshrined in RTDNA's Code of Ethics."