The WORT News Department won five awards in the Excellence in Wisconsin Journalism Awards from the Milwaukee Press Club, including two gold awards.
WORT competed with radio broadcast outlets across the state, most of which have significantly larger budgets and staff. All of these stories were produced in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
A full list of award winners is available here.
Here’s a recap:
Best writing in an audio story, gold
Feature contributor Stu Levitan took gold in the best writing in an audio story category, for his episode on Madison protests against Dow Chemical Company in 1967. The episode is part of Levitan’s weekly Wednesday feature, Madison in the Sixties.
Best long hard audio feature, gold
WORT news director Chali Pittman took the gold in the best long hard feature story category, for her reporting on a protest against the disparate medical treatment and outcomes for Black women, mothers, and babies in Dane County.
Best long soft audio feature, bronze
WORT contributor Gianofer Fields took bronze for her story about a local musician giving up his remaining Hammond organs. The story is part of Fields’ weekly Thursday feature, Radio Chipstone.
Best coverage of a single or ongoing breaking news story
Scenes From the 2020 Presidential Election (Silver)
The news department’s coverage of the myriad aspects of the 2020 presidential election won a silver award. Reporter/producers Martin Rakacolli, Jonah Chester, and Chali Pittman contributed reporting.
Epic Tries to Send Employees Back To In-Person Work (Bronze)
Jonah Chester also won a bronze award for his reporting on local company Epic attempting to send employees back to in-person work last fall.