Place Name: First Place Contestant Name: Abilene Christian Entry Title: 'Watch Out for Wildcats' campaign not a real solution to crosswalk safety Entry Credit: Sheridan Wood, Sydney Varner Judge Comment: A tough call in a ridiculously good category. What distinguishes this piece is the use of strong, plain language that not only illustrates the key problems with the current situation, but also promotes specific potential solutions and offers a solid call to action for the administration. It's not easy to take on the administration when it rolls out a campaign of any kind, but the authors do well to explain why this "fluff" isn't enough.
Place Name: Second Place Contestant Name: UT-Dallas Entry Title: Farage Needs To Be Removed From The Classroom Entry Credit: Ben Ngyuen, Fatimah Azeem, Nandika Mansingka, Mia Ngyuen Judge Comment: A tough call in a tight category, but what makes this piece special is that the authors make clear that while they support the free speech rights of the professor in non-classroom speech, regardless of how repugnant it is, they have concerns with his in-class speech that has caused real harm to students over more than two decades. In this examination, the authors point to a clear path to removing an instructor who is using his position in a way that violates university rules. Then, the authors demand the school takes action.
Place Name: Third Place Contestant Name: Baylor Entry Title: Abolish the attendance policy Entry Credit: Ava Dunwoody Judge Comment: A really tough call in a tight category. The authors do a great job of pointing out how the implementation of a strict policy can create real harm to all members of the university community. The piece also points out the absurdity of giving vague "use your best judgment" latitude to professors in regard to when they should or shouldn't punish students for being sick. This is a great read that draws a big red circle around the idiocy of the university in this situation and then demands change.
Place Name: Honorable Mention Contestant Name: A&M-College Station Entry Title: Print Is Not Dead Entry Credit: The Battalion Editorial Staff Judge Comment: Unlike most "media talking about media" editorials, this one takes on the administration of the school and its efforts to suppress student speech in a blatant effort of censorship. The authors walk the thin line between self promotion and student rights exceptionally well here as they explain what happened, why it was wrong and what needs to happen next.
Competition Comment: This was perhaps the most difficult category to select placement within, as any one of the winners could have moved up or down a place easily. The efforts here are so good, it's extremely difficult to parse the positioning. In addition, another half-dozen entries that might have easily won in any other years were excluded due to the excellence of the winners. This category gives me hope that students still have the fire in the belly necessary to do quality editorial work, while still having the writing and reporting chops to avoid pointless hyperbole in making their points. This category was a joy to read.
