This Tuesday, the Marquette Tribune was honored on a national level, being named the 2010 Best All-Around Non-Daily Student Newspaper in the country by the Society of Professional Journalists. It’s the first time the Tribune has won the award.
SPJ’s Mark of Excellence Awards honor the best in collegiate publishing and broadcasting. This is on par with winning a Pulitzer Prize at a professional newspaper, or pretty darn close to it.
Almost 4,000 entries were submitted this year. The Tribune, after winning the award at the regional level, competed against 11 other newspapers nationwide to take the top prize.
Derrick Chengery, Tribune managing editor, and I have received a flurry of e-mails, Facebook messages and handshakes congratulating us this week, but this award is not about us.
It’s about every single person on staff pouring everything they’ve got into making this an outstanding publication, and everyone around us who supports the Tribune and motivates us to work so hard.
It’s also about last year’s staff, which shares this honor and deserves just as much recognition. Former editor-in-chief Jim McLaughlin had this to say:
“Good leaders know that they’re only as good as their people. … Thanks to my staff, my mentors, my advisers and professors, and to you, our readers, for helping to make the Tribune as a publication the best for the community we serve and love.
Here’s to many more superlative awards, Tribbers!”
I also want to congratulate every current and former Tribune staff member who won an award this school year, as well as those involved with the Marquette Journal, Marquette Television and Marquette Radio who won awards.
I’m so incredibly proud of the Tribune staff, and I’m quite humbled and thankful for the opportunity to lead such a talented group.
Today, I officially pass the torch to Matthew Reddin. I know he’ll make an excellent editor-in-chief, and he and his staff will continue the Tribune’s great tradition next year.
Jeff Engel, editor-in-chief
R.W. Wright • May 29, 2011 at 7:04 am
Does anyone at The Marquette Tribune read and respond to what readers post here
If the point is to increase interaction between the newspaper and its readers, would it not make sense that members of the Tribune staff would reply to what readers write here?
Such as:
* Exactly what did the SPJ judges like about The Marquette Tribune that made it better than almost 4,000 newspapers. This is information that should have been included in the story. The story should have identified other newspapers that were rated highly.
* Would Marquette University consider a return to publishing a daily student newspaper?
Matthew Reddin • Jun 16, 2011 at 11:19 am
R.W. Wright,
My apologies for not replying to your comments. As the Marquette Tribune is currently in a period of transition between administrations and is on a general hiatus during the summer months when my staff isn’t on campus, responding to reader comments hasn’t been a major priority at the moment. Rest assured this will not be the case once regular publication resumes, and also know your comments were both read and noted long before this reply.
In regards to your questions, the Society of Professional Journalism did not specifically point out what they liked about the Tribune, but their criteria for judging includes areas such as accuracy; enterprise and ingenuity; adherence to journalistic standards; significance and effectiveness; clarity, insight and respect for the audience; and adherence to the SPJ Code of Ethics. The Marquette Tribune has no plans to publish a daily newspaper at this time or in the near future, as we do not have the resources for such a major shift.
Please let me know if you have any other concerns,
Matthew Reddin, editor-in-chief
[email protected]
R.W. Wright • May 10, 2011 at 7:58 am
Congratulations to the Marquette Tribune and to Marquette University. It is always special to be recognized, especially at the national level, for producing quality work.
Please explain exactly what the SPJ judges liked about the newspaper that made it better than almost 4,000 other newspapers.
Also, a reminder to Mr. Engel and Mr. McLaughlin: Strong editors and writers understand the concepts of tight, nonwordy writing and of agreement between nouns and pronouns. Read this letter from the editor again with a more-critical eye.
I have read the Tribune regularly this year. It is a fine newspaper, although some of the columns (columnists) left me confused. And I would have liked to read much more about the university, including information on admissions, enrollment, faculty, finances and endowment.
Would Marquette University consider a return to publishing a daily newspaper?