2023 Best of Show / spring conference

Associated Collegiate Press presented Best of Show awards at the conclusion of the ACP Spring National College Media Conference, March 11, 2023, in San Francisco.

More than 750 collegiate journalists and their advisers and 125 speakers attended the conference, sponsored by ACP, the California College Media Association and the Journalism Association of Community Colleges.

The Best of Show competition honored current student work in three categories posted below —

Individual Recognition

Staff Recognition

People’s Choice


Individual Recognition

Blog

First Place
Dominique Williams
The State Hornet, California State University, Sacramento
Stinger Lickin’ Good: Crab Cakes on the coast

Second Place
Zoie Denton
Mustang News, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
Heartbreak on Valentines Day

Third Place
Gavin Hudson
The State Hornet, California State University, Sacramento
OPINION: Wake Up Mr. West

Podcast

First Place
Karl Winter
Pepperdine Graphic Media, Pepperdine University
S2 Finale: Gender Identity and Transgenderism in College Sports

Second Place
Lawrence Charles
The State Hornet, California State University, Sacramento
Collector’s Cave Halloween Special Episode 3 “Michael Myers Masks”

Third Place
Caroline Val
The Miami Hurricane, University of Miami
AP African American Studies, UFuerza, Duke and the Housing Lottery

Fourth Place
Megan Silva
KWDC, San Joaquin Delta College
Delta Book Club Episode 26: The Woman They Could Not Silence

Print Design

First Place
Kate Bustamante
el Don, Santa Ana College
Voter Guide 2022

Second Place
Lizzie Kristal, Reese Putnam
Distraction, University of Miami
Upgrade U

Third Place
Thy Vo
The Sunflower, Wichita State University
Up in arms

Fourth Place
Cailin O’Malley
Indiana Daily Student, Indiana University
Cheatbot

Fifth Place
Caleb Chong
Pursuit, California State University
Dirty Casual’s Guide to Instant Ramen

Sixth Place
Haley Hoidel
The Graphic, Pepperdine University
Into the Woods

Seventh Place
Camila Romero
Ibis, University of Miami
Welcome to Miami

Eighth Place
Emma Jones, Wagner Valdez, Gabriel Huff
The Bison, Harding University
HULA rearranges trip due to protests

Ninth Place
Jude Strzemp, Sophia Sipe
Naked Magazine, Las Positas College
No Place Like Home

Tenth Place
Claire Lorimor, Megan Anderson
Mustang News, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
From 1996 to now…

Photojournalism

First Place
Alexandra Carnochan
The Miami Hurricane, University of Miami
MBB scores most points since 2015

Second Place
Brandon Rubsamen
The Graphic, Pepperdine University
Pepperdine Comes Together to Worship

Third Place
Alex Paul
Indiana Daily Student, Indiana University
Berger rebounds

Fourth Place
Balazs Balassa
The Bison, Harding University
Skate Club

Fifth Place
Dominic Crenshaw
el Don, Santa Ana College
Dons end season with dominant performance

Sixth Place
Carissa Leong
The Los Angeles Loyolan, Loyola Marymount University
The Haunting of Hannon: A Photo Essay

Social Justice Reporting

First Place
Gigi Gradillas, Dustin Malek, Rachel Lopez
The Hornet, Fullerton College
OC Sidewalk Vendors Struggle With Costly, Confusing County, City Permits Meant To Help

Second Place
Julie Blunt, Madelaine Church, Emma Hall, Tony Rodriguez, Chris Woodard
The State Hornet, California State University, Sacramento
Pro-choice and religious protests break out in library quad

Third Place
Naomi Vanderlip
Mustang News, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
At a loss for words

Fourth Place
Ailyn Dumas, Nicolette Monique Luna
The Southwestern College Sun, Southwestern College
Mexico’s Women Demand Change

Fifth Place
Justine Chahal, Alyssa Branum
The State Hornet, California State University, Sacramento
Mourning family, friends hold candlelight vigil for late Tyre Nichols

Sixth Place
Vanessa Gomez
The Collegian, San Joaquin Delta College
Ethnic Studies now required for CSU/UC bound students

Seventh Place
Kimia Kowsari, Anika Besst, Lydia Meier
The Oracle, Hamline University
Classroom incident and administrative response raise questions for Muslim students

Eighth Place
Hailey Valdivia, Jasmine Ascencio
The State Hornet, California State University, Sacramento
Diaspora, resilience and common ground: Library Gallery celebrates Hmong culture in latest exhibit

Ninth Place
Anika Besst, Becky Z. Dernbach
The Oracle, Hamline University
Hamline video reveals painting of Prophet Muhammad was visible to students before trigger warning

Tenth Place
Leslie Lozada, Erwin Lopez-Rada
The NEIU Independent, Northeastern Illinois University
You Are Not Alone: NEIU’s K(no)w More Program Offers Help to Victims of Domestic Violence

Broadcast News Story

First Place
Olivia Marie Palombo
The Los Angeles Loyolan, Loyola Marymount University
Sodexo protest propels workers to Jan. 17 contract negotiation

Second Place
Cristian Gonzalez
The State Hornet, California State University, Sacramento
Students dissatisfied with lack of safety improvements on campus

Third Place
Abby Wilt
Pepperdine Graphic Media, Pepperdine University
Malibu City Council Fights Against Low-Impact Camping

Fourth Place
Elmer Mejia Sagastume
CBU TV, California Baptist University
Riverside County addresses fentanyl epidemic

Broadcast Feature Story

First Place
Gabrielle Salgado
Pepperdine Graphic Media, Pepperdine University
First and Foremost: Antonio Gomez Shares Journey from San Joaquin Valley to Pepp

Second Place
Maddie Cindrich, Genesis Jefferson
The Los Angeles Loyolan, Loyola Marymount University
Planet-Based

Third Place
Vittina Ibanez
Beach TV News, California State University, Long Beach
Where are the Women in Aviation?

Fourth Place
Marques Brown
CBU TV, California Baptist University
CBU combines programs to make School of Performing Arts

Broadcast Sports Story

First Place
Skyler Stamps
KNWT, Northwest Missouri State University
The Bearcats are MIAA champs

Second Place
Jack Bynum
Mustang News, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
Cal Poly Women’s Soccer

Third Place
Brett Rosen
CBU TV, California Baptist University
CBU baseball alumnus drafted to MLB

Advertising Design

print, online, video, audio

First Place
Van Hong
Mustang News, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
The Academy

Second Place
Katherin Pericas
Distraction, University of Miami
Distraction Calling Better Pick up

Third Place
Jerilynn Hoover
Northwest Missourian, Northwest Missouri State University
Gray’s Truck Stop


Staff Recognition

Advertising Special Newspaper Section

all

First Place
Mustang News
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo

Second Place
Daily Titan
California State University, Fullerton

Third Place
The Graphic
Pepperdine University

Broadcast News Program

two-year campus

First Place
San Joaquin Delta College

Broadcast News Program

four-year campus

First Place
MNTV: Mustang News
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo

Second Place
The Avion
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach

Third Place
Beach TV News
California State University, Long Beach

Fourth Place
The State Hornet Broadcast
California State University, Sacramento

Digital Newsletter

two-year campus

First Place
Observer News
Elgin Community College

Digital Newsletter

four-year campus

First Place
The Pixel
Pepperdine University

Second Place
Daily Titan
California State University, Fullerton

Third Place
The State Hornet
California State University, Sacramento

Fourth Place
The Los Angeles Loyolan
Loyola Marymount University

Fifth Place
The Miami Hurricane
University of Miami

Sixth Place
The Everglade
San Francisco State University

Feature Magazine

two-year campus

First Place
Inside Fullerton
Fullerton College

Second Place
El Sol
Southwestern College

Third Place
The Bull
Pierce College

Fourth Place
Naked
Las Positas College

Fifth Place
The Oak Leaf
Santa Rosa Junior College

Sixth Place
Viewpoint
Skyline College

Feature Magazine

four-year campus

First Place
Pursuit
California Baptist University

Second Place
Distraction
University of Miami

Third Place
Word
University of California, Santa Barbara

Fourth Place
Currents
Pepperdine University

Fifth Place
Pride Sports Journal
Springfield College 

Sixth Place
Access Magazine
San Jose State University

Seventh Place
Tufts Observer
Tufts University

Eighth Place
The Spear
San Jose State University

Ninth Place
The Aviator
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach

Literary Arts Magazine

two-year campus

First Place
Havik
Las Positas College

Literary Arts Magazine

four-year campus

First Place
Seeds Literary and Artistic Journal
Northeastern Illinois University

Newspaper/Newsmagazine

two-year campus

First Place
el Don
Santa Ana College

Second Place
The Southwestern College Sun
Southwestern College

Third Place
The Express
Las Positas College

Fourth Place
Roundup
Pierce College

Newspaper/Newsmagazine

four-year campus, 15,000 students or fewer

First Place
El Leñador
California Polytechnic State University, Humboldt

Second Place
The Oracle
Hamline University

Third Place
The Student Life
The Claremont Colleges

Fourth Place
The USD Vista
University of San Diego

Fifth Place
The Orion
California State University, Chico

Sixth Place
The Miami Hurricane
University of Miami

Seventh Place
Northwest Missourian
Northwest Missouri State University

Eighth Place
The Banner
California Baptist University

Ninth Place
The Graphic
Pepperdine University

Tenth
The Runner
California State University, Bakersfield


Newspaper/Newsmagazine

four-year campus, more than 15,000 students

First Place
Mustang News
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo

Second Place
The Sunflower
Wichita State University

Third Place
Spartan Daily
San Jose State University

Fourth Place
Indiana Daily Student
Indiana University

Fifth Place
The Daily Mississippian
University of Mississippi

Sixth Place
Daily News
Ball State University

Seventh Place
XPress
San Francisco State University

Eighth Place
Daily Titan
California State University, Fullerton

Ninth Place
The Observer
Fordham College at Lincoln Center

Yearbook

all

First Place
Ibis
University of Miami

Second Place
Royal Purple
Kansas State University

Third Place
Tower
Northwest Missouri State University

Fourth Place
Arbutus
Indiana University

Fifth Place
Petit Jean
Harding University

Sixth Place
Angelos
California Baptist University

Seventh Place
The Tower
Loyola Marymount University

Eighth Place
The Ole Miss
University of Mississippi

Website

two-year campus

First Place
Talon Marks
Cerritos College

Second Place
The Valley Star
Los Angeles Valley College

Third Place
The Corsair
Santa Monica College

Fourth Place
el Don
Santa Ana College

Fifth Place
The Collegian
San Joaquin Delta College

Sixth Place
SAC Media
Mt. San Antonio College

Seventh Place
The Hornet
Fullerton College

Eighth Place
The Observer
Elgin Community College

Ninth Place
The Mesa Press
San Diego Mesa College

Tenth Place
Coast Report
Orange Coast College

Website

four-year campus, 15,000 students or fewer

First Place
The Graphic
Pepperdine University

Second Place
The Runner
California State University, Bakersfield

Third Place
The Los Angeles Loyolan
Loyola Marymount University

Fourth Place
The Student Life
The Claremont Colleges

Fifth Place
The Orion
California State University, Chico

Sixth Place
The Miami Hurricane
University of Miami

Seventh Place
The Northern Iowan
University of Northern Iowa

Eighth Place
Distraction
University of Miami

Ninth Place
Quest
Reed College

Tenth Place
The Case Western Reserve Observer
Case Western Reserve University

Website

four-year campus, more than 15,000 students

First Place
Mustang News
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo

Second Place
The State Hornet
California State University, Sacramento

Third Place
The Sunflower
Wichita State University

Fourth Place
Daily Titan
California State University, Fullerton

Fifth Place
Indiana Daily Student
Indiana University

Sixth Place
Golden Gate Xpress
San Francisco State University

Seventh Place
Xpress Magazine
San Francisco State University



People’s Choice

Selected by staff votes from all print publications at the conference.

First Place
Spartan Daily
San Jose State University

Second Place
Indiana Daily Student
Indiana University

Third Place
El Leñador
California Polytechnic State University, Humboldt

Fourth Place
Distraction
University of Miami

Fifth Place
XPress
San Francisco State University

Sixth Place
The Tower
Loyola Marymount University

Seventh Place
The Sunflower
Wichita State University

Eighth Place
el Don
Santa Ana College

Ninth Place
The Runner
California State University, Bakersfield

Tenth Place
Seeds Literary and Artistic Journal
Northeastern Illinois University