Student Journalism Awards 2022
(Works Produced in 2021)
Student Excellence in Written Reporting: Simon Levien
Student Excellence in Photojournalism, Single or Photo Story: Minh Connors
Student Excellence in Video Storytelling, Short or Long-Form: Hannah Zhihan Jiang
Student Excellence in Audio Storytelling: Jennifer Nguyen
Student Excellence in Online/Digital Journalism: Maya Homan
Student Excellence in Written Reporting - Works Produced in 2021
Simon Levien, “The Crimson Klan,” The Harvard Crimson
ABOUT THE PROJECT: This article rediscovers and connects a long narrative of the Ku Klux Klan’s historical presence among the student body at Harvard University, by means of a yearlong archival deep dive. A centerpiece of the findings is a pair of photographs depicting student Klan members posing in full KKK regalia around the John Harvard Statue – the University’s enduring symbol – at 1924 commencement. The article joins together a series of Klan-related incidents, relying on some primary sources and The Crimson’s archives: from KKK demonstrations, to the forming of a KKK campus chapter, to a 1950s cross burning in Harvard Yard, to screenings of “Birth of a Nation.” Harvard history scholars had little knowledge of this brazen presence when interviewed. It quickly became apparent that 20th century histories of the legacy of slavery on campus – effectively the most recent and present histories of racism, such as the second Klan – were broadly absent from Harvard-sanctioned slavery research. This article dually reconstructs the history of the KKK at Harvard which had gone broadly unaddressed for a century and obliquely critiques the Legacy of Slavery Initiative for its narrowness.
RUNNER-UP: Roshan Fernandez, "Once the soul of the sport, short track auto racing must reinvent itself in order to survive," Richmond Times-Dispatch
Simon Levien
(Politics Intern, The Boston Globe)
SIMON LEVIEN is a rising junior at Harvard University studying History from Sparta, New Jersey. He has worn many hats at The Harvard Crimson, but primarily serves as a news executive, magazine staff writer and audience engagement editor. This summer, he is covering politics as an intern at The Boston Globe. Previously he was a member of The New York Times Student Journalism Institute and was a 2021 AAJA VOICES Fellow.
Student Excellence in Photojournalism, Single Photo or Photo Story - Works Produced in 2021
Minh Connors, “Tornado Devastation in Western Kentucky,” Evansville Courier and Press
ABOUT THE PROJECT: On the night of Dec. 10 until the following morning, a series of tornadoes touched down across five states. The deadliest of these tornadoes traveled more than 160 miles across the western part of Kentucky, leaving a trail of death, displacement, and destruction. According to the National Weather Service, at least 55 people were killed from this particular tornado weeks before Christmas. These images depict the devastation and aftermath in the days, hours after the tornado hit western Kentucky.
Captured these moments while interning at the Evansville Courier & Press.
RUNNER UP: N/A
Minh Connors
(Photojournalism intern, The Buffalo News)
Born in Vietnam, MINH CONNORS was raised on the Jersey Shore by filmmaker parents who instilled a love of the truth and the visual arts. With his assignments ranging from making documentaries of demolition derbies, to covering the aftermath of tornadoes, Minh's work has been featured in publications such as The New York Times, USA Today, Politiken, Reuters, The Buffalo News, Evansville Courier & Press and Columbia Missourian. He graduated from the Missouri School of Journalism with a bachelor's degree in convergence journalism, and has been pursuing a master's degree in photojournalism at the Missouri School of Journalism since Spring 2022. Minh Connors is currently a photojournalism intern at The Buffalo News, and a coordinator for Pictures of the Year International.
Student Excellence in Video Storytelling, Short or Long-Form - Works Produced in 2021
Hannah Zhihan Jiang, “Stakes are high for AAPIs as Supreme Court reviews Texas abortion law,” The Yappie; Medill News Service
ABOUT THE PROJECT: AAPI women’s unique challenges when it comes to abortion rarely made major news headlines to my knowledge. The only relevant article I came across was written by the executive director of the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum (NAPAWF) Sung Yeon Choimorrow. It was an opinion piece for The Lily under The Washington Post. https://www.thelily.com/aapi-women-have-been-overlooked-in-the-abortion-fight-but-our-voices-matter/
According to editors at the Yappie, the article submitted received 275 total page views, 48 likes on Instagram and 50 likes on Twitter. It was retweeted more than 25 times. Gwendolyn Mink, whose mother was the first Asian-American woman elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, retweeted the article.
RUNNER UP: Seiji Yamashita, “Medical Student Overcomes Trauma from Anti-Asian Attack,” New York City Lens
Hannah Zhihan Jiang
(Reporter, Medill News Service/The Yappie)
HANNAH ZHIHAN JIANG is a sophomore student studying Journalism and International Studies at Northwestern University. She is an executive producer for Politicat, a student political show, and a reporter for Northwestern News Network. Previously, she had covered congress, health and science for Medill News Service in Washington D.C. and published with UPI, Frederick News-Post and WebMD. She also interned at International Channel Shanghai and China Daily. She was born and raised in Suzhou, China.
Student Excellence in Audio Storytelling - Works Produced in 2021
Jennifer Nguyen, "What 'working hard' means to two teens, separated by a generation," kuow.org, RadioActive Youth Media podcast
ABOUT THE PROJECT: Jennifer Nguyen didn't know much about her mom's life growing up before working on this story. Through creating the story Jennifer realized that she and her mom are more like than she thought. The experience brought them closer. Jennifer writes:
"We both had childhoods defined by helping our mothers. I’ve never thought about it before, but my mom is the most hard-working person I know. She’s my role model. I know why she pushes me now. I always thought my mom would be with me forever until I die. This conversation with her made me realize that this wasn’t the case. I’m grateful that my mom’s still alive and that I can continue learning from her. But more than anything, I’m grateful to be her daughter."
RUNNER UP: Daniel Lam, “After the pandemic left them empty, dim sum restaurants are bustling once again,” NPR News, Weekend Edition Sunday
Jennifer Nguyen
(Youth Producer, KUOW's RadioActive Youth Media)
JENNIFER NGUYEN is a current senior at Franklin High School in Seattle, Washington. As a proud Asian American of Vietnamese descent, born and raised in South Seattle, a diverse community, Jennifer loves to engage in the various cultures and communities the world has to offer - whether it be through food, entertainment, or the media. And as a Radioactive Youth Media Producer, she creates pieces that share both her culture and youth.
Jennifer Nguyen accepts the 2022 Student Excellence in Audio Storytelling Award.
Student Excellence in Online/Digital Journalism - Works Produced in 2021
Maya Homan, “Crumbling concrete, leaky ceilings: Twitter watchdogs chronicle disrepair on the MBTA,” The Boston Globe
ABOUT THE PROJECT: I included an interactive map of Boston's MBTA Subway system to give readers a sense of where issues had been reported publicly on Twitter. I used dots to symbolize stations without any publicly available complaints between June 1, 2021 and December 1, 2021. Stations that had received a complaint during that same time period were marked using Twitter's logo. When users click on a station, a tooltip will display the name of the station, the line that it's a part of, and a list of any complaints from MBTA riders. The complaints are hyperlinked, so users can click on a complaint and they will be redirected to the original tweet reporting the issue. At the bottom of every tooltip is a link to the Customer Support page on the MBTA's website, which allows users to file a report without having to use Twitter. Tweets from the MBTA riders I interviewed and from the MBTA's Twitter account are embedded throughout the article. I also included a form at the end of the article for users to alert the Globe about problems with the MBTA that had not received adequate coverage.
RUNNER UP: Owen Berg, “The cost of anti-Asian racism,” Oxford Stories
Maya Homan
(Magazine, Travel & Address Co-op, The Boston Globe)
MAYA HOMAN is a journalist based in Boston, MA. She is currently enrolled at Northeastern University, where she is working towards a bachelor's degree in journalism with minors in public health and health science. Her work has appeared in numerous publications and newsletters, including The Boston Globe, The Globe Magazine, Boston.com, The Palo Alto Weekly, The Scope, The Huntington News, and 3 to Read. In 2021, she was named as a regional finalist for the Society of Professional Journalists' Mark of Excellence Awards for General News Reporting. She enjoys investigating overlooked issues and bringing them to light.
