NEW ORLEANS — WWL-TV has been honored with four 2023 regional Edward R. Murrow Awards, including awards for best news documentary, best news series, best sports reporting, and best digital coverage.
The regional awards were announced Thursday by the Radio Television Digital News Association.
"WWL-TV is proud to continue a tradition of excellence and we are honored to be recognized again by the Radio Television Digital News Association," WWL-TV News Director Nicole Waivers said.
Best News Documentary
The award for Best News Documentary honors WWL-TV's "Wounded City" special presentation. The documentary explores solutions to New Orleans' crisis of rising crime. The series also delves into the city's history, revisiting the 1990s when New Orleans was dubbed the "murder capital," but years later also saw its murder rate cut in half.
'Wounded City', which was hosted by WWLTV's Charisse Gibson, included reporting from Investigator Mike Perlstein, and was produced by Waivers.
"Wounded City was our attempt to dissect the issues that continue to plague our city. Everyone in our newsroom has been impacted by crime, so it takes all of us to figure out how we can stop it," Gibson said. "We wanted to explore what works and what doesn’t. Our initial documentary starts that conversation and it has been ongoing. We hope this dialogue makes an impact on how we see crime and the criminals who commit it. It aligns perfectly with WWL-TV’s mission, to serve the greater good of our communities."
Best News Series, Sports Reporting
WWLTV was awarded two regional awards (best news series and best sports reporting) for Katie Moore's 'Ida Strikes.' The two-part series documents the history of Bowl South, a popular Houma bowling alley, it's destruction by Hurricane Ida and its legacy at other bowling centers across the country.
"I stumbled upon this story a year ago in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida while field anchoring. The bowling center was destroyed and it was shocking to see," Moore said when the series premiered. "I didn't know then that the story was still unfolding and I'm grateful that we got the chance to dig deeper and tell it a year later. So often in journalism and storytelling, one story sparks another and another and another."
Best Digital Coverage
The top award for best digital coverage recognizes content published and curated on WWLTV.com, WWL-TV's app, WWL+ streaming channel, and the station's social media platforms.
This recognition includes the work of WWL-TV Digital Director Thomas Planchet, senior digital producer Kevin Dupuy and digital producers Harry Howard, Connor Van Ligten, and Kenny Kuhn.
The 2023 award marks the sixth Edward R. Murrow Award for the WWLTV digital team in six years, including the team's 2021 national award win.
Below is the short description and the links provided on the winning digital entry.
Tornadoes, lingering effects of Hurricanes, unearthing cultural icons and celebrating the accomplishments of real life heroes.
News in New Orleans in 2022 included many of the problems of living in a severe-weather region with a population that is relatively poor and who grew up in the age of segregation.
WWLTV.com once again used its platforms to highlight stories that make a difference with key investigations, breaking news coverage, an examination of racial issues and profiles of those who made a difference to generations.
Here are links to some of our top coverage in the aforementioned areas.
Investigation into unequal rebuilding after Katrina that went largely on racial and economic lines. In Louisiana those two lines are often blurred. An investigation from David Hammer along with Pro Publica and the Advocate. /article/news/investigations/hurricane-katrina-road-home-unequal-rebuilding-pro-publica/289-2491c290-6db7-4c08-9872-044e2fbe9e93
Feature: Examination of a business that was almost completely destroyed in 2021’s Hurricane Ida. To the bowling alley’s proprietor, it was all she had known her entire adult life. However, some of her building was salvageable and the ‘expensive and hard to find’ parts were donated to other alleys across the country. She went to visit one of them and the result is one you can’t read about without getting a lump in your throat.
/article/news/investigations/katie-moore/bowl-south-houma-bowling-alley-hurricane-lanes/289-bf0fcf72-9fff-4685-baa6-331e85d08ce8
Breaking: On Dec. 14, two EF-2 tornadoes, relatively rare in southeast Louisiana, damaged or destroyed hundreds of homes and gave those used to the devastation of hurricanes but also used to the days of warning that come with them, an unpleasant chance to experience the sudden fear of a tornado and the quick action needed to survive it. We looked at it from people in all of the areas affected. /article/news/local/temproary-housing-trailers-tornado-jefferson/289-204afeab-8654-4c80-9590-84b6826865f6
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: A story of a man who was rarely seen but heard from – a lot. The first black radio disc jockey in the state of Louisiana, originally had to feed lines to a white DJ who pretended to be black. Once he finally got on the air though, Doctor Daddy-O changed the way radio, and music was presented to audiences in southeast Louisiana.
Historic: Former New Orleans Mayor “Moon” Landrieu was not the city’s first Black mayor, but he was the first to make Black residents a large part of his administration. Those moves weren’t always warmly accepted, to put it mildly. But Landrieu persevered and later became the head of Housing and Urban Development under President Jimmy Carter. Our historian, Dominic Massa offers a look at the head of a Louisiana political dynasty and a man pivotal to the Civil Rights movement in New Orleans and Louisiana.
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