NEWS

Three first-place awards were clinched by editors of Louisiana Tech’s student-run newspaper, The Tech Talk, during the Southeast Journalism Conference meeting held in Hammond Feb. 11-13.

Casey Ardoin, editor-in-chief; Robert Wilson, news editor; and Ben Corda, photography editor; won first place awards in on-site competitions in editorial writing, entertainment writing and photography, respectively.

Other award winners for the on-site competition were Kathleen Duncan, news editor for Tech Talk, who received third place in media ethics, and Jessica Wethington, a former photographer and reporter for The Tech Talk, who received an honorable mention in current events. Due to the students’ awards in the on-site categories, Louisiana Tech placed third overall in the on-site competition.

“This is the reward for the hard work, dedication and the long hours they put in to produce an award-winning student newspaper,” said Dr. Reginald Owens, acting chair of the journalism department. “These achievements tell us something about the caliber of our students’ work. These students are competing against the best student journalists in this region. We are certainly proud of their individual awards and The Tech Talk’s overall ranking among the top student newspapers in the Best of the South competition.”

In the Best of the South competition, Meredith Maines, former Tech Talk editor-in-chief, received second place and a $500 check for College Journalist of the Year; Samantha Horn, another former Tech Talk editor-in-chief, won second place for Best News Reporting; and Amy Olita, managing editor for The Tech Talk, received third place for Best Entertainment Writer. The Tech Talk itself received 10th place for Best Newspaper.

The Southeast Journalism Conference seeks to encourage greater interest in student journalism and create closer ties among journalism schools in the Southeast. Schools from the following eight states participated: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina and Tennessee.

Written by Judith Roberts