WUSF has won a coveted National Edward R. Murrow Award for overall excellence in the large market radio division.
It's among the most respected journalism awards in the world, recognizing the station's commitment to public service above all else.
WUSF competed against regional award winners from across the country, representing the nation's top 50 markets.
The station's submission (click on the "Listen" link above to hear the audio) in the overall excellence category included broadcast, digital and social media work from all of its journalists.
Nearly 20 individual stories, podcast segments and live breaking news coverage were represented, along with blog posts and web pages.
The award recognized work completed during a tumultuous year for the region, which was the scene of several major news events.
"This Murrow symbolizes an incredible body of work in a year of significant impacts on our community," said WUSF General Manager JoAnn Urofsky. "The WUSF team reported, analyzed and alerted people during dangerous weather. They kept people informed in election season and helped make sense of the devastating hurricanes that hit our community. WUSF’s commitment to local journalism stands strong."
Three hurricanes, two within the span of two weeks, devastated the area. WUSF's staff focused on helping people prepare for the storms and then provided more than 30 combined hours of live coverage as the storms came ashore. In the aftermath, they fanned out across the region to deliver stories about the storms' impacts and are still reporting on it to this day.
With hurricane season still in full swing, WUSF's reporters had to shift some of their focus to covering 2024 elections. The station had laid the groundwork for its coverage early in the year, surveying voters to learn about the issues that mattered to them. Reporters held listening sessions to better inform their stories and focused on three key areas: the economy, immigration and abortion.
The station also led an initiative with other public media stations around the state to publish a Voter Guide. And the Florida Matters team produced a 19-episode podcast called Our Changing State focused on informing a younger audience about the elections.
Instagram reels became an additional home for WUSF's elections coverage and the news produced during the hurricanes. More than 100 posts and reels produced more than one million views, and reached an audience that may not know of our radio and online presence.
The news could be heavy at times, but WUSF’s reporters also found time to report on human interest stories that kept the audience smiling. The station's entry reflects a balance of the serious journalism the year demanded, as well as the sound-rich, creative storytelling that makes public media special.
