Spotlight walked away with three major awards from Youth Journalism International for calendar year 2023.
The Spotlight staff took home first place in team enterprising reporting for the second straight year when YJI announced its award winners Saturday. The staff won for an issue it produced in December of 2023 that was all about music.
The issue was titled “Music – The Gift that Keeps on Giving” and featured 16 pages covering six styles of music and the artists that made those styles famous. It marked the fifth time in the last 10 years that Spotlight has captured this award.
Judges said of this issue: “A thorough, deep dive into music history, offering something for everyone in your genre coverage. Historical musical timelines coupled with a “who’s next,” cinema, records and concerts. The reporting stays true to its audience and has a wonderful, consistent tone throughout.”
Spotlight also earned honorable mention in Team Enterprise Reporting for an issue it produced about video games.
Spotlight also won the First Amendment Award for a September, 2023 issue that was all about the history of Constitution Day.
Judges said: “This newspaper’s content and overall presentation was focused on a specific theme, the U.S. Constitution. The highly readable descriptions of our founding documents benefit of all Americans. By including the “Six Big Ideas,” you furthered our understanding of democracy. You communicated the core of our foundational documents in a concise and readable way, respecting your busy students’ time. The discussion of our First Amendment’s freedoms was notable for including comments of students and teachers. The layout, art and graphics were particularly compelling. Your work is outstanding.”
Senior Danielle Shumar also was a big winner, earning runnerup status in the student journalist of the year category and earning second place in book review for a piece she wrote titled “Blake has hit with unlikeable characters.”
Judges said: “The author piques the reader’s interest by highlighting how writing unlikeable characters adds to, rather than detracts from, the success of this novel. This acts as a useful hook to keep the reader engaged and has the book itself stand out in their memory.”
Sophomore Lucas Allison won second place in film review for “Scorsese’s latest worth the time.
Judges said: “Lucas’s review of Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon is substantive, nuanced, and looks at the epic in a multifaceted way. Taking into consideration our nation’s regrettable history when it comes to indigenous populations, the bestselling book that served as the source material, and the complexity of the director’s artistic choices, Lucas paints a vivid portrait of a film worth seeing. I would have liked a little more of a spotlight on the performances and a punchier title to the piece (which may have been an editor’s choice), but otherwise it is a terrific job.”
Sophomore Faith Oluwamutemi won honorable mention sports photography for “Final Game.” Judges said: “We really like the two players thinking about their careers after their last game.
BDTV reporter Jonas Walker won honorable mention for multi-media sports feature for “BD Neon Football Recap” Judges said: “Music and video were well matched to capture the intensity of a football game.”
Senior Joleth Herrera won honorable mention in sports news for “Giants complete the goal.” Judges said: “Joleth’s chronology of how the game unfolded was detailed and informative, providing a strong summary for the reader. The “Mission Accomplished” closing line was an excellent exclamation point to the story. Mixing in some reaction quotes within the story during the step-by-step summary could have added some perspective and helped with flow.”
Senior Lynden Johnson earned second place in illustrations for “Music — The gift that keeps on giving.” Judges said: “We love this piece, which is reminiscent of a wonderful, traditional inky collage. You can hear this illustration.”
Allsion and Herrera also won second place in illustration by a team for “Video Games.”
Shumar becomes the second Ben Davis student to earn runnerup (Anna Eggers in 2020) from YJI. BD grad Evelyn Sanchez was named YJI Student Journalist of the Year in 2018.
Ben Davis student media combined for 11 YJI awards. YJI recognized winners from 14 different countries this year. The YJI awards cover anything published between January 1, 2023 and December 31, 2023.
The previous week, Ben Davis student media earned 16 awards in the Ball State J-Day annual journalism competition. Three students earned superior (Ball State’s version of first) in senior Stephanie Phillips in portrait photography, Shumar in news writing and sophomore Lucas Allison in photo illustration.
Student media also earned 14 awards from Indiana Women’s Press Club with first place going to senior Jayla Jackson in sports photo, Allison in review writing and 2023 graduates Grace Holler and Kimberly Bustoos-Hernandez in yearbook page design.