Awards

Prepare Dazzling Murrow Award Submissions

As your newscast wraps, you think to yourself, “Man, we really hit a home run with that one!” It’s a high-fiver—everyone in the newsroom could sense the victory too. So what do you do next? If you answered, “Prepare for the next newscast,” you are wrong. Why not pause for a second to add that story, that newscast, that great use of sound or photography to the list of potential entries for the Edward R. Murrow Awards?

Murrow entries are always due on January 31, but it’s never too early to think about your work. In fact, keeping a running list of what could be award-winning work may help you better organize your thoughts come January 30, as you frantically prepare your submission.

Getting organized is a huge part of the process at KOA-AM in Denver. News director Kathy Walker says she starts by getting feedback from everyone in the newsroom. “Sometimes it can be so hard to choose stories,” she says. “They’re like your kids, you love them all equally. That’s where having a ‘listening committee’ can really help you choose your best stuff.”

And what constitutes your “best stuff?” Judges want to hear and see compelling storytelling and good content, Walker says. “Throw out entries that don’t meet your best standards,” she says. “A story with a good subject won’t win if the entry contains poor audio and bad writing.”

What else can you do to be in contention?

Know what the judges are looking for. Start by reading the award program’s rules and category descriptions online (RTNDA.org). Reach out to former judges for feedback, or (even better) get involved in the judging process yourself.
Update your list of potential entries often or convene a monthly meeting with your team to discuss great work you’ve already done.
Don’t presume that having a major national news event in your own backyard is the only way to win a Murrow. Stories that are compelling—if only to your market—are often the best.
Don’t wait until the last minute to think about your entries. This advice is one of the most important—and most ignored—rules of thumb when it comes to Murrows.
Have confidence in your work and the judging process. Unlike some other programs, the Murrow Awards are not dominated by one or two large-market stations. In 2008, 54 news organizations won national awards out of 3,459 entries.

The bottom line, Walker says, is that you can’t win if you don’t enter. “Winning a Murrow is worth the time and effort you put into your entries,” she says. “So many broadcasters do great work, but so few get the distinct honor of winning a Murrow Award. The feeling you get when your station is named on the Murrow list is worth the effort of putting together the entries.