University of Montana School of Journalism

News and Events

UM Journalism students win more Hearst Awards

Peet McKinney, a senior photo student, won sixth place in the sports and news category of the Hearst Journalism Awards Program for his photos of wrestlers and bikers (below).

Jamey Daniel, also a senior photo student, tied for 19th place for her photos of firemen and a rodeo cowboy (above). This is the second of three photojournalism competitions for the year. Click on thumbnails to enlarge.

In the Hearst Broadcast News competition, three UM students placed in the top 20.

Damaris "Madie" Beltran placed 15th in TV News. One of her stories aired on Montana PBS as part of "Montana Journal," a half-hour program produced by seniors. The story showed how the Blackfeet language school in Browning is carrying on tradition by teaching the language at the very youngest ages. In her second story, we tagged along on Halloween as a volunteer group went trick or treating for food to stock the local food bank.

Johanna Feaster placed 15th in the Radio News competition. One entry looked at the popularity of and problems with skateboarding in Missoula. Feaster talked to skateboard enthusiasts as well as those who suffered property damage because of the sport. She also explored solutions to the damage problems. That story aired on KUFM Radio. Another story looked at the parking problems on and around the University of Montana campus. The parking story aired on KBGA student radio.

Robin Catterton placed 18th in Radio News. Both of her radio reports dealt with the aftermath of the 9-11 attacks. In one piece, she learned how Missoula residents were stockpiling gas masks, weapons and food in the wake of the attacks. Another reported on the run on patriotic material at local fabric shops.

Chambers takes home award

Gus Chambers, a TV producer for UM's Broadcast Media Center and an adjunct in the J-school's R-TV Department, recently won a Gold Award from the Admissions Marketing Report in a national competition for university promotional materials. Chambers' winning entry was a 30-second TV commercial called " Seekers and Learners," which highlights the importance of a university in the post 9-11 world. The ad, narrated by UM President George Dennison, ran during KECI-TV's coverage of the recent Olympic Games.