KERA received four top awards from the Public Media Journalists Association, including a rare double win for reporter Christopher Connelly and two collaboration honors for the statewide collaborative the station leads.
In all, Texas stations won 15 awards from the group, which was formerly known as Public Radio News Directors Inc. (PRNDI). That included best news/public affairs program in the largest station category for Texas Standard, the statewide newsmagazine from KUT in Austin that's co-produced by KERA, Houston Public Media and Texas Public Radio in San Antonio. KERA's winners:
- Use Of Sound (1st place): Christopher Connelly, "From Chevy Pickups To Lamborghinis, Families Race Friday Nights At Texas Motor Speedway"
- Nationally Edited Breaking News (2nd place): Christopher Connelly, "Dallas Police Officer Arrested For Killing Black Man In His Apartment"
- Continuing Coverage (1st place): Texas Station Collaboration, "Immigration, The Border And Zero Tolerance in Texas"
- Collaborative Effort (2nd place): Texas Station Collaboration, "What My Student Taught Me"
That makes 22 awards overall for KERA so far this year. Here are the rest:
Texas Associated Press Broadcasters
Journalists from KERA earned four first-place honors and eight seconds at the Texas Associated Press Broadcasters Awards. That included a double win for the special project "The Race To Save Failing Schools." The project — by reporters Stella M. Chávez and Bill Zeeble, and digital journalists Molly Evans, Christy Robinson and Justin Bowers — won best series and best investigative report. KERA reporter Christopher Connelly won in the general assignment category, and the station staff earned top honors for best digital.
Other KERA double winners were the statewide conversation program "Think" and the Art&Seek project "Putting Guns Center Stage," which each won two second-place honors.
The statewide newsmagazine "Texas Standard" also earned three awards. The show is co-produced by KERA, KUT in Austin, Houston Public Media and Texas Public Radio in San Antonio. The KUT newsroom was honored a dozen more times, and the Houston station won four.
In all, public radio stations won 31 of the 38 Texas AP Broadcasters awards for large radio stations. In the small-station categories, KETR in Commerce earned 15 trophies.
KERA's total matches last year's. Here are KERA's winners:
- Investigative Report (1st place):KERA staff, "The Race To Save Failing Schools"; (2nd place): KERA staff, "One Crisis Away: The Price of Prison"
- Series (1st place):KERA staff, "The Race To Save Failing Schools": (2nd place): Art&Seek staff, "Putting Guns Center Stage"
- General Assignment (1st place): Christopher Connelly, "Southern Baptist Church Grapples With #MeToo After Fort Worth Leaders Fall"
- Digital (1st place): KERA staff
- Sports Story or Sports Series (2nd place ): Bill Zeeble, "There's Only One Baseball Glove Factory Left in The United States in Nocona, Texas"
- Serious Feature (2nd place): Courtney Collins, "This Dallas Man Commutes Six Hours Round Trip to Get to His Better-Paying Job"
- Online/Special Content (2nd place): Art&Seek staff, "Putting Guns Center Stage"
- Documentary (2nd place): "Think" and KQED's "California Report" special: "A Line Divides: 100 Days Since Zero Tolerance"
- Local Talk Show (2nd place): "Think: Will the Rio Run Dry?"
- Newscast (2nd place): KERA staff, "Texas Instruments CEO Is Out; First Days In The U.S.; Still Working At 77"
Regional Edward R. Murrow Awards
KERA's four Murrows led a dominant performance by Texas public radio stations.
Texas Standard won three regional Murrows; the statewide public radio newsmagazine is based at KUT in Austin and coproduced by KERA, Houston Public Media and Texas Public Radio in San Antonio. KUT earned three other regional Murrows; TPR won two.
In all, public radio stations in Texas won 20 of the 23 Murrows in Region 6, which covers Texas and Oklahoma. That includes a sweep of the small-station categories: seven wins for Marfa Public Radio and one for KETR in Commerce.
The Radio Television Digital News Association presents the awards each year in 14 regions; the winners go on to compete for national Edward R. Murrow Awards -- one of the top honors in broadcasting.
KERA earned three regional Murrows last year. Here are the station's 2019 regional winners:
- Newscast: KERA staff, "Texas Instruments CEO Is Out; First Days In The U.S.; Still Working At 77"
- Series: KERA staff, "One Crisis Away: The Price of Prison"
- Video: KERA Art&Seek staff, "Relics of Violence: Cry Havoc Theater's 'Cenotaph' "
- Multimedia: KERA staff, the special projects "One Crisis Away: Still On The Edge," "The Race To Save Failing Schools," "One Crisis Away: The Price Of Prison," "Art&Seek Spotlight," plus KERANews.org.
National Alliance On Mental Illness/North Texas
NAMI/North Texas honored KERA's mental health reporter, Syeda Hasan, with one of its 2019 Community Awards:
- Media Award: Syeda Hasan.
Broadcast Education Association
KERA's "One Crisis Away" project and videographer Thorne Anderson were honored by the Broadcast Education Association's Festival of Media Arts.
- Television Feature News Reporting: Best of Competition (tie), Thorne Anderson, One Crisis Away: Still On The Edge.
