COLLEGE PARK — The University of Maryland Philip Merrill College of Journalism’s Capital News Service won 17 awards with 10 individual students and multiple bureaus recognized in this year’s Maryland, Delaware, District of Columbia Press Association contest.
CNS, staffed by Merrill College students and led by faculty members, competed against professional news organizations in the annual contest. All work was entered in Division F, with categories organized by total audience.
CNS placed first in 15 categories and second in two categories. Alisha Camacho '24 and Ricky Podgorski '25 each won two first-place awards. Camacho earned prizes in features-driven multimedia storytelling and environmental reporting. Podgorski won in features video and sports video.
Merrill College’s Local News Network, which partners with CNS on all of its journalism projects, placed first in two categories and second in another. LNN was recognized in education reporting for “Behind the Blueprint,” a comprehensive report on the ambitious multibillion-dollar plan to remake public education in Maryland. It won first place in pre-election coverage for its 2024 school board voting guide.
LNN placed second in the series category for “Child Care: Missing in Maryland?,” a comprehensive look at the child care shortages that have developed in the state and beyond since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The CNS audience engagement bureau took first place in two categories — general social media reporting for its 2024 election coverage, and breaking news and social media for its coverage of the Key Bridge collapse.
CNS-TV News took first in special event video for its election coverage.
The Shirley Povich Center for Sports Journalism, Howard Center for Investigative Journalism and CNS also placed first in the sports story category for the project, “Youth Tackle Football: Balancing risks and rewards depends on race and place.”
Here is a complete list of the MDDC Awards won by CNS:
General Social Media Reporting
First Place - CNS Audience Engagement Bureau, Special Coverage of the 2024 Election
Best Use of Interactive Media
First Place - Molly Szymanski, “What makes a hit? A look into 2024's top-charting songs”
News-driven Multimedia Storytelling
First Place - Dylan Shulman, “How 'blue' is Maryland? A closer look at the state's voting history”
Features-driven Multimedia Storytelling
First Place - Alisha Camacho, “If only birds were 'puppies': Lights Out Baltimore tracks 3,000 window collisions since 2018”
Multimedia Storytelling (Sports)
First Place - Jenna Bloom, “Why Lexington, Mississippi Embraces Youth Tackle Football”
Features Video
First Place - Ricky Podgorski, “Sole Wash”
Sports Video
First Place - Ricky Podgorski, “Big Ten Expansion Challenges Athletes”
Special Event Video
First Place - CNS-TV News Staff, CNS-TV News Election 2024 Live Coverage
Education Reporting
First Place - Local News Network, “Behind the Blueprint”
General News Video
First Place - Sydney Nauman, “Oyster Population”
Sports Story
First Place - Povich Center and Howard Center, “Youth Tackle Football: Balancing risks and rewards depends on race and place”
Environmental Reporting
First Place - Andrea Durán, Daranee Balachandar and Alisha Camacho, “'No grass, no crabs': Maryland community grapples with Gunpowder River mud pollution”
Wild Card: Pre-election coverage of the 2024 Election
First Place - Local News Network, School Board Voter Guide
Breaking News & Social Media
First Place - CNS Audience Engagement Bureau, Coverage of the Key Bridge Collapse
Sports Photo (Sports Action)
First Place - Freddy Wolfe, “When families' love of the game conflicts with the science”
General News Video
Second Place - Nathan Schwartz, “Power Lines Cut Through Farms“
Series
Second Place - Local News Network, “Child care: Missing in Maryland?”
For more information, contact:
Josh Land, Communications Manager
joshland@umd.edu