Neon Tommy, a student-run online news source that covers Los Angeles, won four first-place awards at the Los Angeles Press Club Awards on June 24.
Co-Editor-in-Chief Catherine Green took the prize for online feature. Her winning story, “Kneading the System: Mark Stambler’s Cottage Food Crusade,” is about one man’s push to make it easier for homemade food to reach consumers.
"I was still jittery for a good 15 minutes afterward," said Green, who is working toward a master's in text journalism. "It's a huge honor, and only adds fuel to the fire when it comes to solid journalism—producing work I can be proud of."
Sports Director James Santelli received the award for best sports photo. His picture was of Arizona State linebacker Vontaze Burfict pointing at USC quarterback Matt Barkley. “I had never been a credentialed photographer at a sporting event before that day, and look what happened!” said Santelli about the opportunities Neon Tommy has given him. He also added jokingly, “And since I won an LA Press Club Award for my first time shooting sports photography, I figure I better go for a Pulitzer next year.
Benjamin Gottlieb, who was Neon Tommy’s executive editor last year and now works at The Washington Post, and Arezou Rezvani, who graduated with a master’s in broadcast journalism this May and is working at NPR, won for student podcast/broadcast. Their podcast, “Eye on the Middle East,” covered political, social and economic happenings, featured guest experts and was broadcast weekly on Neon Tommy.
Tracy Bloom, who now works for Truthdig and was previously deputy editor of Neon Tommy, nabbed the award for student individual blog for Politics Today, a roundup of the political news of the day. Bloom thinks Neon Tommy's success reflects the impressive skills USC Annenberg students have.
"Neon Tommy isn't just a student journalism news site--it's a news site run by journalists who happen to be students," said Bloom, who just earned her master's in communication management.
Journalism professor and director of USC Annenberg Digital News Marc Cooper said these awards prove Neon Tommy, which was competing with some of the best news media in the country, can participate in the professional world.
“Neon Tommy takes what is taught in the classroom and applies it in the real world of competitive and serious journalism,” said Cooper, whom the L.A. Press Club named Journalist of the Year in 2000. “Neon Tommy is not a simulation of the real world, it's the real thing.”
The publication, which Gottlieb said is the most trafficked online-only student publication in the U.S., was nominated for 16 awards at the gala that took place at the Biltmore Hotel.
