Newhouse student and MPJ Magazine win Mark of Excellence National Awards from Society of Professional Journalists

Newhouse student and MPJ Magazine win Mark of Excellence National Awards from Society of Professional Journalists June 14, 2006Jaime Winne Alvarezjlwinne@syr.edu

MPJ Magazine and junior Ethan Ramsey of Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications have been named winners of 2005 Mark of Excellence National Awards from the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ). The SPJ annually presents the awards to honor the best in student journalism in 43 categories for print, radio, television and online journalism.

For its 2005 issue, MPJ Magazine, a publication produced by students in Newhouse’s military photojournalism program, received the national award for best student magazine published once a year. The magazine showcases skills students in the program — military photographers from the U.S. Air Force, Army, Navy and Marine Corps — learned and perfected during their 10-month course of study.

Ramsey, a magazine major, won the national award for sports column writing for his Daily Orange column “Birdland.”

“This is the second time MPJ has won this prestigious award in the six years since the program has been back at Newhouse, and we are thrilled,” says Newhouse professor Sherri Taylor, an advisor to MPJ. “The magazine is completely produced by the students — from conceptualizing the issue to writing, editing, designing and proofing — this honor is completely gratifying for their hard work.”

Entries in this year’s competition were published or broadcast during the 2005 calendar year and were first judged at one of the SPJ’s 12 regional competitions. First-place regional winners were forwarded to the national competition. Collegiate journalists submitted more than 3,100 entries for the competition. National winners and finalists will be recognized during the Mark of Excellence luncheon Aug. 25 at the SPJ Convention and National Journalism Conference in Chicago.

The SPJ works to improve and protect journalism and is the nation’s most broad-based journalism organization, dedicated to encouraging free practice of journalism and stimulating high standards of ethical behavior. Founded in 1909, the SPJ promotes the free flow of information vital to a well-informed citizenry, works to inspire and educate the next generation of journalists, and protects First Amendment guarantees of freedom of speech and press.