Newhouse Students Shine with 2 Top Prizes Among Haul at Hearst Journalism Awards

Newhouse School students took top prizes in the Television Features and Multimedia Narrative Storytelling competitions at the prestigious Hearst Journalism Awards.

For finishing first in the TV features category, senior broadcast and digital journalism major John Perik won a $3,000 award and qualified for the National Television Championship in San Francisco in June.

Murphy McFarlane, a senior visual communications major with an emphasis in cinematography, also received a $3,000 scholarship for taking first in the multimedia narrative storytelling category for her piece, “Full Circle.”

Produced during the Alexia Fall Workshop and published on TheNewsHouse.com, McFarlane’s story looked at how a fourth generation of family farmers incorporated sustainable practices in hopes of helping others better understand their source of food. The win qualifies McFarlane for the National Multimedia Championship, also in San Francisco in June.

Other honorees from Newhouse:

• Nicole Aponte, senior in broadcast and digital journalism, took third place in the television features competition. Aponte earned a $1,500 scholarship and also moved on to a semifinal round for qualification into the National Television Championship.
• Wendy Wang, who graduated in 2023 from Newhouse with a bachelor’s degree in visual communications/photography, placed second in the multimedia narrative storytelling competition for her entry, “Dandelion.” The story followed a Syracuse convenience store employee who uses photography to connect with his customers. Wang was awarded a $2,000 scholarship.