Austin, Texas — The following were awarded ACP Best of Show at the ACP/CMA Fall National College Media Convention on Sunday morning.
Newspaper Special Edition
1. Arizona Daily Wildcat, Univ. of Arizona, Tucson, Ariz.
2. The Pendulum, Elon Univ., Elon, N.C.
3. Tulane Hullabaloo, Tulane Univ., New Orleans, La.
4. Alestle, Southern Illinois Univ.-Edwardsville, Edwardsville, Ill.
5. Mustang News, California Polytechnic State Univ., San Luis Obispo, Calif.
6. The Auburn Plainsman, Auburn Univ., Auburn University, Ala.
7. The Shorthorn, Univ. of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, Texas
8. University Press, Florida Atlantic Univ., Boca Raton, Fla.
9. Flor-Ala, Univ. of North Alabama, Florence, Ala.
10. The All State, Austin Peay State Univ., Clarksville, Tenn.
Judge’s comments: Things to consider are the topic of the special issue, quality and quantity of coverage, the overall design, photos, and quantity of ads. Several good entries had common themes. The most worthy were special topics such as guns on campus, wellness and Hurricane Katrina, ten years later. It was very pleasing to see all this hard work and creativity.
Literary Magazine
1. Colonnades, Elon Univ., Elon, N.C.
2. Archarios, Coastal Carolina Univ., Conway, S.C.
3. Yahara Journal, Madison Area Technical College, Madison, Wis.
4. Hawai’i Review, Univ. of Hawaii-Manoa, Honolulu, Hawaii
5. Scribendi, Univ. of New Mexico, Albuquerque, N.M.
6. The Windmill, Brookhaven College, Farmers Branch, Texas
7. Miscellany, Georgia Southern Univ., Statesboro, Ga.
8. Windhover, North Carolina State Univ., Raleigh, N.C.
9. Metrosphere, Metropolitan State Univ. of Denver, Denver, Colo.
10. The Peel, Appalachian State Univ., Boone, N.C.
Judge’s comments: A good literary journal is a struggle of opposing powers: clever design vs. clever fiction, striking poetry vs. striking typography, original art vs. original themes. And so on. Each entry had some wondrous thingâ€â€but the best had many wondrous things in harmony: writing, poetry, design, prose, editing, typography, theme. Surprisingly, more than half the entries contained stories of the difficulties of veterans of Afghanistanâ€â€this national problem is being address in art at least. Too many entries had centered, sans serif poems with two-word lines and many exclamations.
Multimedia Package
1. DePaulia, DePaul Univ., Chicago, Ill.
https://depauliaonline.atavist.com/sexual-assault-depaul
2. The Daily Evergreen, Washington State Univ., Pullman, Wash.
http://desportsweekend.com/
3. Minnesota Daily, Univ. of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minn.
http://www.mndailyprojects.com/goldy
4. Mustang News, California Polytechnic State Univ., San Luis Obispo, Calif.
http://mustangnews.net/fans-guide-blue-green-rivalry/
5. Emerald Media, Univ. of Oregon, Eugene, Ore.
http://www.dailyemerald.com/2015/10/12/uopd-lost-a-big-lawsuit-why/
6. The Shorthorn, Univ. of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, Texas
http://www.theshorthorn.com/news/donald-trump-attracts-more-than-people-in-dallas/article_7dd796f2-5b66-11e5-a422-bfe65cbfea1e.html
7. NT Daily, Univ. of North Texas, Denton, Texas
http://ntdaily.com/first-marriage-license-for-gay-couple-denied-in-denton/
8. The Informer, Univ. of Hartford, West Hartford, Conn.
http://wp.me/pN9pl-geQX
9. The Daily Gamecock, Univ. of South Carolina, Columbia, S.C.
http://www.dailygamecock.com/article/2015/10/change-comes-to-sc-pride-festival
Judge’s comments: The category is multimedia package, stressing the multi. The best packages made use of audio, video, words and images to tell a story. Quality of audio and video matters as much as quality of images and words.
Feature Magazine
1. Tusk, California State Univ., Fullerton, Fullerton, Calif.
2. Distraction, Univ. of Miami, Coral Gables, Fla.
3. SCAN, Savannah College of Art and Design-Atlanta, Atlanta, Ga.
4. Detours, Truman State Univ., Kirksville, Mo.
5. The Kentucky Kernel, Univ. of Kentucky, Lexington, Ky.
6. The Burr, Kent State Univ., Kent, Ohio
7. Collegian Wired, Los Angeles City College, Los Angeles, Calif.
8. Pursuit, California Baptist Univ., Riverside, Calif.
9. Warrior Life, El Camino College, Torrance, Calif.
10. Tempo, Coastal Carolina Univ., Conway, S.C.
Judge’s comments: A strong category with a variety of magazine types. Design overall invites readers to the pages and the strongest entries hold the readers there with narrative leads placing the reader in the story. The use of alternative storytelling through infographics adds much to the magazines who use them. More quick reads/infographics would be welcome. More attention to type and hierarchy would benefit readability of several of the magazines. Shorter, attention-getting leads are a must. Overall, story selection is broad, and photos often are compelling and provide a strong entry point into the story. Top winners do a great job of making their publications stand out with speciality techniques, creating a personality of the magazine.
Four-year Daily
1. Indiana Daily Student, Indiana Univ., Bloomington, Ind.
2. The Oklahoma Daily, Univ. of Oklahoma, Norman, Okla.
3. Minnesota Daily, Univ. of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minn.
4. The Daily Texan, Univ. of Texas, Austin, Texas
5. Technician, North Carolina State Univ., Raleigh, N.C.
6. The Daily Titan, California State Univ., Fullerton, Fullerton, Calif.
7. The Daily Athenaeum, West Virginia Univ., Morgantown, W.V.
8. The Daily Tar Heel, Univ. of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, N.C.
9. The Baylor Lariat, Baylor Univ., Waco, Texas
10. The Battalion, Texas A&M Univ., College Station, Texas
Judge’s comments: The best newspapers answered important questions that most journalists never think to ask and provided ledes to full of sensory detail and emotion that they made the judge put a hand to his heart and say “Oh, wow!â€Â. They showed leadership on the opinion pages and surprises in photos, art, layout and design.
Four-year Less Than Weekly
1. The Clarion, Bethel Univ., St. Paul, Minn.
2. University Press, Florida Atlantic Univ., Boca Raton, Fla.
3. The Mercury, Univ. of Texas at Dallas, Richardson, Texas
4. Horizon, Indiana Univ. Southeast, New Albany, Ind.
5. Patriot Talon, Univ. of Texas at Tyler, Tyler, Texas
6. Forum, Westminster College of Salt Lake City, Salt Lake City, Utah
7. Pandora’s Box, York College, Jamaica, N.Y.
8. Rambler, Texas Wesleyan Univ., Fort Worth, Texas
9. The Baker Orange, Baker Univ., Baldwin City, Kan.
10. The Banner, California Baptist Univ., Riverside, Calif.
Judge’s comments: The top papers in this category were bold in their story selection. Reporting was thorough and use of narrative storytelling keeps readers intrigued and interested. Design in many cases is dynamic and exceptional.
Four-year Weekly
1. DePaulia, DePaul Univ., Chicago, Ill.
2. Daily O’Collegian, Oklahoma State Univ., Stillwater, Okla.
3. The Ithacan, Ithaca College, Ithaca, N.Y.
4. The Vermont Cynic, Univ. of Vermont, Burlington, Vt.
5. Emerald Media, Univ. of Oregon, Eugene, Ore.
6. The Murray State News, Murray State Univ., Murray, Ky.
7. The Northwest Missourian, Northwest Missouri State Univ., Maryville, Mo.
8. The Shield, Univ. of Southern Indiana, Evansville, Ind.
9. The Maroon, Loyola Univ., New Orleans, La.
10. Mustang News, California Polytechnic State Univ., San Luis Obispo, Calif.
Judge’s comments: The winners in this division served readers with campus coverage of coverage of powerful topics  rape, sexual assault, racial tension and protest, tragic deaths and binge drinking. Yet they did much more than just cover those topics. They addressed them with sensitivity and balance, perspective and sound news judgment.
Two-year Newspaper
1. El Don, Santa Ana College, Santa Ana, Calif.
2. The Clarion, Madison Area Technical College, Madison, Wis.
3. The Sun, Southwestern College, Chula Vista, Calif.
4. The Sentinel, North Idaho College, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho
5. The Et Cetera, Eastfield College, Mesquite, Texas
6. The Advocate, Contra Costa College, San Pablo, Calif.
7. Richland Chronicle, Richland College, Dallas, Texas
8. The Collegian, Tarrant County College, Hurst, Texas
9. Hudsonian, Hudson Valley CC, Troy, N.Y.
10. The Foghorn, Del Mar College, Corpus Christi, Texas
Judge’s comments: Very difficult to decide the bestâ€â€just outstanding work. I can’t wait to see more from these students and newspapers in the future.
Website Large School
1. The Daily Tar Heel, Univ. of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, N.C.
http://www.dailytarheel.com
2. Emerald Media, Univ. of Oregon, Eugene, Ore.
http://www.dailyemerald.com
3. Mustang News, California Polytechnic State Univ., San Luis Obispo, Calif.
http://mustangnews.net/
4. The Baylor Lariat, Baylor Univ., Waco, Texas
http://baylorlariat.com
5. The Auburn Plainsman, Auburn Univ., Auburn University, Ala.
http://www.theplainsman.com
6. El Don, Santa Ana College, Santa Ana, Calif.
http://www.eldonnews.org
7. The Shorthorn, Univ. of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, Texas
http://www.theshorthorn.com
8. Eagle News, Florida Gulf Coast Univ., Fort Myers, Fla.
http://eaglenews.org
9. The Miami Hurricane, Univ. of Miami, Coral Gables, Fla.
http://www.themiamihurricane.com
10. The Peak, Simon Fraser Univ., Burnaby, B.C.
http://www.the-peak.ca/
Judge’s comments: The key separator for these sites above those that didn’t place, as well as those in the top five vs. the bottom five, was the completeness of the site. Did it engage the reader? Did it have multimedia that was integrated throughout the site, not just on a standalone page? Was its social media embedded in the site, and was the social media current, and did social media drive users back to the site? Did each section, but especially the homepage, have current, relevant content? These sites stood out as not just as what a student media site should be, but what a media site should be.
Website Small School
1. The Pendulum, Elon Univ., Elon, N.C.
http://www.elonpendulum.com
2. Rambler, Texas Wesleyan Univ., Fort Worth, Texas
http://www.therambler.org
3. Index, Truman State Univ., Kirksville, Mo.
http://tmn.truman.edu/
4. Doane Owl, Doane College, Crete, Neb.
http://www.doaneline.com
5. Graphic, Pepperdine Univ., Malibu, Calif.
http://www.pepperdine-graphic.com
6. Equinox, Keene State College, Keene, N.H.
http://kscequinox.com/
7. The Sentinel, North Idaho College, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho
http://www.nicsentinel.com
8. Mast Media, Pacific Lutheran Univ., Tacoma, Wash.
http://mastmedia.plu.edu/
9. Emertainment Monthly, Emerson College, Boston, Mass.
http://emertainmentmonthly.com/
10. The Shield, Univ. of Southern Indiana, Evansville, Ind.
http://www.usishield.com
Judge’s comments: Websites need to be response and consumable across all devices. It’s a requirement, not a “nice thing to have.†Also, when choosing a template, understanding aspect ratios and the additional work your photo editors will have needs to be considered. Auto cropping is not a practice newsrooms should employ within workflows.
Yearbook 1-299 pages
1. The Angelos, California Baptist Univ., Riverside, Calif.
2. Crossings, Roger Williams Univ., Bristol,
3. Warbler, Eastern Illinois Univ., Charleston, Ill.
4. Citadel, Westmont College, Santa Barbara, Calif.
5. Griffon, Missouri Western State Univ., St. Joseph, Mo.
6. Excalibur, Evangel Univ., Springfield, Mo.
7. Ilium, Taylor Univ., Upland, Ind.
8. The Sunflower, Emporia State Univ., Emporia, Kan.
9. Edda, Augustana College, Sioux Falls, S.D.
10. Natsihi, Whitworth Univ., Spokane, Wash.
Judge’s comments: My #1 and #2 were pretty clear-cut because both books actually carried their themes both visually and verbally through their entire book. #1 had the edge because almost every lede was intriguing and grabbed my attention. Design-wise I loved the diverse yet consistent layouts. While some of the other books had a little better photography, the way this staff linked their photos with the stories and the rest of the book just won me over. I loved that this book broke some rules with typography and tried several font families, but obviously planned what they were going to use and when, which so worked with the whole feel of the book. The top five did a better job with the journalistic aspects of their publications using direct quotes, which is essential. Great photography is a bonus, but captions are also important, especially when there is no “story.†All the books in the top ten did a great job covering their campuses and there were some nice personality profiles in all the books.
In all the books: 1) Great job covering your campus. 2) Modern, eye-catching and finger-pleasing covers. Covers are as much about the feel as the look. 3) Please caption all photos. Trust me, you won’t remember everything on these pages as you get older. 4) More student voices in your stories.
Yearbook 300+ pages
1. Arbutus, Indiana Univ., Bloomington, Ind.
2. Agromeck, North Carolina State Univ., Raleigh, N.C.
3. Petit Jean, Harding Univ., Searcy, Ark.
4. Round Up, Baylor Univ., Waco, Texas
5. Ibis, Univ. of Miami, Coral Gables, Fla.
6. Sooner, Univ. of Oklahoma, Norman, Okla.
7. Talisman, Western Kentucky Univ., Bowling Green, Ky.
8. Campanile, Rice Univ., Houston, Texas
9. Tower, Northwest Missouri State Univ., Maryville, Mo.
10. The Michiganensian, Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Mich.
Judge’s comments: These books reflected their school traditions and spirit. The best books took a careful look at the year that wasâ€â€warts and allâ€â€and celebrated and contemplated the issues and events. Hallmarks of all: great photos! Breathtaking expanded shots! Many clever covers and divider pages.