Leannda Carey, a student broadcaster with WMUL-FM, Marshall University’s public radio station, was twice named a national finalist in the 2011 Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) National Mark of Excellence Contest in the categories of radio sports reporting and radio in-depth reporting.
The awards were presented at the recent SPJ Convention and National Journalism Conference at the Marriott Harbor Beach Resort in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.
“Our radio students have established a tradition at WMUL-FM of being able to successfully compete at the national level with other student journalists. WMUL-FM Station Manager Leannda Carey twice received recognition in the SPJ’s National Mark of Excellence Contest for her work and that is no small accomplishment,” said Dr. Chuck G. Bailey, professor of Radio-Television Production and Management in the W. Page Pitt School of Journalism and Mass Communications at Marshall and faculty manager of WMUL-FM.
“These national finalist awards are further evidence of the quality of the work performed by our talented broadcasting students at WMUL-FM and the W. Page Pitt School of Journalism and Mass Communications.”
The national finalist award-winning entry in radio sports reporting 4-year college/university category from Marshall was:
- “The Cato-Shuler Connection,” written and produced by Carey, a graduate student from Wellsburg. It was broadcast during the Marshall vs. Ohio University football pre-game show in Athens, Ohio, Saturday, Sept. 17, 2011.
The national finalist award-winning entry in radio in-depth reporting 4-year college/university category from Marshall was:
- “Minding the Meters: Huntington Municipal Parking Board,” written and produced by Carey. It was broadcast during “Aircheck” Thursday, April 28, 2011.
Overall there are 39 categories for print, radio, television and online journalism in the SPJ National Mark of Excellence contest. There were approximately 4,000 entries from schools across SPJ’s 12 regions in the contest. SPJ has been presenting the Mark of Excellence Awards since 1972.
