CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- It is awards season again in the world of radio.
WBBM Newsradio is proud to announce that it was the chosen recipient of two 2021 Regional Edward R. Murrow awards in the Large Market radio category from the Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA).
The awards include Overall Excellence and Best Newscast. The region includes stations in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio.
The Best Newscast award was based on the 1 p.m. newscast from Feb. 18, 2020, when President Trump commuted former Governor Rod Blagojevich’s prison sentence. Journalists reported from City Hall, Blagojevich’s home, and around the city. An expert from the Better Government Association, who wrote a book about Blagojevich, was also interviewed.
The newscast included the usual traffic, sports, weather, business, and features, in addition to a story about a man who is facing federal charges for threatening police officer Jason Van Dyke and his family (Van Dyke was on trial for the shooting death of Laquan McDonald).
The Overall Excellence award was based on stories produced by WBBM Newsradio during the 2020 calendar year, including breaking news, continuing coverage, newscasts, and feature reporting.
"This is a testament to the quality of work each of you perform, day in and day out. This is a true team effort, starting with Julie's direction, and an amazing crew of reporters, anchors, writers, editors, assistant producers, production folks, traffic producers and reporters, sports reporters, the digital team, the Noon Business Hour crew, and anyone and everyone who calls WBBM their journalistic home. Considering the taxing nature of the last year plus, this helps prove just how exceptional our team really is," said Ron Gleason, WBBM Newsradio's Brand Manager/News Director, in a email to the newsroom.
The awards were announced Thursday. Regional award winners will move on to the national round of the competition.
The Radio Television Digital News Association has been honoring outstanding achievements in electronic journalism with the Edward R. Murrow Awards since 1971.
Audio of all WBBM Newsradio's entries can be found at: https://www.radio.com/wbbm780/entertainment/state/edward-r-murrow-awards-wbbm-newsradio