{"id":5536,"date":"2017-09-01T15:43:03","date_gmt":"2017-09-01T20:43:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/studentpress.org\/nspa\/?page_id=5536"},"modified":"2017-09-26T10:38:08","modified_gmt":"2017-09-26T15:38:08","slug":"bcf17","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/studentpress.org\/nspa\/awards\/bcf17\/","title":{"rendered":"2017 Broadcast Pacemaker Finalists"},"content":{"rendered":"

MINNEAPOLIS \u2014 The nation\u2019s top scholastic broadcast news programs were recognized today by the National Scholastic Press Association who announced the 15 finalists in its annual Pacemaker competition.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe Pacemaker is the association\u2019s preeminent award and is often called the Pulitzer Prize of scholastic journalism,\u201d said Laura Widmer, executive director. \u201cNSPA is honored to recognize the best of the best.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The NSPA Pacemaker award has a rich tradition and started just a few years after the organization was founded in 1921. The Pacemaker was added for broadcasting in 1996 to reflect its growing importance at the high school level.<\/span><\/p>\n

Each school entered three programs from the 2016-2017 school year. A team of three judges from College Broadcasters, Inc. viewed each entry discussing its strengths and weaknesses.<\/span><\/p>\n

The judging team praised the overall quality of the entries: “The Pacemaker-winning entries stood out for their quality, not only in the production, but in the stories being told, the writing, editing and hosting, and the willingness to tackle controversial topics. These were exceptional newscasts start to finish.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Shows were divided into live and pre-recorded categories. The frequency of the broadcast was also considered with daily shows competing in a category, with weekly, bi-weekly, monthly or less-frequently in another. <\/span><\/p>\n

The 15 Pacemaker finalists included 14 high schools and one middle school representing eight states. Texas lead with five broadcast programs named as finalists. Overall, four of the finalists produced live broadcasts and seven aired daily shows. <\/span><\/p>\n

Of the 15 Pacemaker finalists, eight will be named Pacemaker winners. In all, there were 55 entries.<\/span><\/p>\n

Insights<\/span> and observations from the judges about the Pacemaker winning broadcasts will be posted when the Pacemaker winners are announced along with professional bios of the judges.<\/span><\/p>\n

Broadcast Pacemaker finalists will be recognized and the Pacemaker winners will be announced at the <\/span>JEA\/NSPA Fall National High School Journalism Convention<\/span><\/a>, Nov. 16-19, 2017 in Dallas.<\/span><\/p>\n

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