2023 Innovation Pacemaker finalists
ACP Pacemaker honors innovation
Seven student media operations rewarded
for forward thinking
Sept. 8, 2023
MINNEAPOLIS — Associated Collegiate Press has recognized seven collegiate student media programs as finalists in the Innovation Pacemaker competition.
The winners will be announced at the ACP Pacemaker and Individual Awards Ceremony at 4:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 30, at the Fall National College Media Convention, in Atlanta.
“The Pacemaker is the association’s preeminent award,” executive director Laura Widmer said. “ACP is honored to recognize the best of the best.”
A joint submission by two student media organizations in different states is among the finalists — marking the first time two universities have been jointly recognized.
The prestigious Pacemaker recognizes overall excellence and distinguishes the top student media produced during a particular school year. The award started shortly after the association was founded in 1921 and is often regarded as the most-competitive, most-honored award in collegiate journalism.
The Innovation Pacemaker is designed to encourage out-of-the-box thinking and reward student media for the courage to take chances to improve service to their customers, readers and communities.
“Collegiate student media is rapidly changing and those programs that don’t generate new revenue streams and innovative ways to deliver content to their readers will struggle to survive,” associate director Gary Lundgren said. “Print is now just one component — there is far more to a successful student media program than publishing the campus newspaper.”
Leadership, coverage, content delivery, marketing, business, community, press freedom and partnerships are among the areas where innovation is encouraged.
Finalists are alphabetical by state.
ACP awards ceremonies
4:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 30
Finalists honored and
winners announced
for fall Pacemakers —
Broadcast
Innovation
Magazine
Multiplatform
Newspaper/Newsmagazine
Online
Winners announced —
ACP Individual Awards
11 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 1
ACP Best of Show awards
Enter Best of Show
at the fall convention.
2023 Innovation Pacemaker finalists
listed by state
Main Hill Media
University of Arkansas
Fayetteville, Arkansas
Student leadership: Riley Atkinson, Kaila Caligur, Maddie Murphy, Ryan O’Toole
Adviser: Kerry Gilbert
> entry
Main Hill Media, a student-run advertising agency, launched a campus influencer program to help clients meet their marketing goals and generate revenue for student media.
The Los Angeles Loyolan
Loyola Marymount University
Los Angeles, California
Student leadership: Chris Benis,
Jillian Caforio, Jennifer Woo
Advisers: Tom Nelson, Kevin O’Keeffe
> entry
Celebrating the five freedoms, The Los Angeles Loyolan collaborated with student government to reintroduce First Amendment Week to the Loyola Marymount University community.
Pepperdine Graphic Media
Pepperdine University
Malibu, California
Student leadership: Sahej Bhasin,
Samantha Torre, Abby Wilt
Adviser: Elizabeth Smith
> entry
News Talks established an engaging way to facilitate awareness of news literacy on campus while allowing Pepperdine Graphic Media to gain insights into how audiences engaged with their journalistic products.
Immigrants in Middle America
Ball State University & Western Kentucky University
Covering the challenges facing small mid-American cities such as Bowling Green, Kentucky, and Muncie, Indiana, the student media and public media teams at Ball State University and Western Kentucky University collaborated to create content that is shared across multiple platforms and markets.
> entry
Ball State Daily News, Ball Bearings Magazine
Ball State University
Muncie, Indiana
Student leadership: Elissa Maudlin
Adviser: Lisa Renze-Rhodes
College Heights Herald
Western Kentucky University
Bowling Green, Kentucky
Student leadership: Alexandria Anderson,
Jake Moore, Debra Murray
Advisers: Chuck Clark, Carrie Pratt
The State News
Michigan State University
East Lansing, Michigan
Student leadership: Staff
Advisers: Wesley Herold,
Kim Margolis, Chris Richert
> entry
When three students were killed and five injured in a mass shooting on the Michigan State University campus, The State News journalists were suddenly faced with surviving and covering the unthinkable.
> 911 calls depict students desperately trying to barricade in unlocked classrooms during shooting
The Daily Gamecock
University of South Carolina
Columbia, South Carolina
Student leadership: Kailey Cota, Sydney Dunlap, Tyler Fedor, Sabrina Hampton, Michael Sauls
Advisers: Sydney Cranmer, Sarah Scarborough
The Daily Gamecock, collaborated for the first time with The Post and Courier, the state’s largest newspaper. The ensuing investigation revealed hundreds of mold complaints in campus dorms, and the University of South Carolina’s flawed tracking system.