WKU's Public Radio Wins
Associated Press Awards
April 15, 2004
Bowling Green, Ky. - The Public Radio Service of Western Kentucky University earned seven first-place awards in this year's statewide Associated Press broadcast competition.
"The Mid-Day Edition," the 30-minute daily news summary produced by the staff of Western's Public Radio, was named the Best Newscast. Judges praised the combination of international, national and regional coverage, as well as the choice of interview topics included in the program. The Mid-Day Edition is produced and anchored by Joe Corcoran, Kevin Willis, Dan Modlin and Jeanine Howard Cherry.
WKYU-FM News Director Dan Modlin earned first-place awards for Best Series for a special report on capital punishment and for Best Public Service Reporting for a series on suicide prevention efforts in Kentucky. He also earned a first-place award for Best Investigative/Enterprise Reporting for a series on methamphetamine abuse and addiction, which included interviews with undercover officers and a former college student who had become addicted.
Assistant News Director Jeanine Howard Cherry earned first-place awards for Best Use of Sound for a report on child safety restraints and for Best Feature for a report on Trooper Island.
Modlin and reporter/producer Kevin Willis earned a first in Best Sports Reporting for a preview of the 2003 Western Kentucky University Hilltopper football season.
Western's Public Radio also received a second-place award for a report on cancer in Kentucky and honorable mention awards for team coverage of the Katie Autry case and a special report on the upcoming Supreme Court ruling on the Pledge of Allegiance. "A Decision on the Pledge" was produced by Corcoran and Modlin.
Modlin said the awards, presented Tuesday in Louisville, are especially meaningful because the judges recognized coverage of some very important issues in the region.
"We strive to provide in-depth looks at subjects like suicide prevention, the Pledge of Allegiance decision, capital punishment, child safety and methamphetamine addiction," he said. "We believe that public radio is uniquely positioned to address such issues, and a tremendous amount of effort goes in to that type of reporting."
Western's Public Radio is WKYU-FM in Bowling Green, WDCL-FM in Somerset, WKPB-FM in Henderson/Owensboro and WKUE-FM in Elizabethtown.
For more information, contact Dan Modlin at (270) 745-5843. More WKU news is available on the World Wide Web at www.wku.edu. If you'd like to receive WKU news via E-mail, send a message to WKUNews@wku.edu.
