March 19, 2019

The Delta Collegiate student news organization at Delta College has been recognized for creating the best student-run TV newscast in the nation. The team that produced the newscast "DeltaBeat" – specifically the February 27 episode – was presented the prestigious David L. Adams Apple Award in New York City on March 9 as part of the College Media Association’s spring conference.

"DeltaBeat" was the brainchild of Michael Pieper, video editor for the Collegiate, and Arts & Letters faculty members Crystal McMorris, who teaches journalism courses, and Kimberly Wells, who teaches broadcasting. From the launch in September through the latest award-winning newscast, the student staff strived for continual improvement, with critiques and coaching from Wells, who draws on years of experience as a TV news producer, and McMorris, a former newspaper reporter and columnist.

"Through trial and error, we were able to hone in on our mission and produce a broadcast that not only serves as a fresh news outlet for Delta students, but also one that we are very proud of," Pieper said. "'DeltaBeat' was created to bring a visual element to our news coverage, in a compact video broadcast format that will engage students."

Several student journalists have had work featured on "DeltaBeat," which airs on YouTube every two weeks and runs for 3-7 minutes. The most recent episodes have been shot in a local grandmother’s attic to allow for more flexible production hours and backdrop construction than available in the campus studio.

Pieper, of Midland, is an Electronic Media Broadcasting major who serves as chief videographer, editor and executive producer. Other student-journalists from the Collegiate featured in the winning newscast include:

• Page Designer Robynn Verhaeghe of Essexville, an Art + Design major, served as news anchor
• Videographer Kevin Lazzaro of Midland, an Electronic Media Broadcasting major, was videographer and boom operator
• Editor-in-Chief Joseph Thornton of Saginaw, an Economics major, delivered a Pioneer sports update
• News Editor Michael Piowawarski of Hemlock, an Electronic Media Broadcasting major, wrote scripts and reported
• Reporter Zach Parfuniak of Midland, a Sociology major, delivered a movie review

Thornton says the newscast helps busy students keep on top of important news and local events.

 "'DeltaBeat' gives everyone the opportunity to become knowledgeable about their community just by watching a short five-minute video,” he said. “It's a great way for the average college student to know what is going on around them if they don't have the time to read each article within the print version of the Collegiate."

The David L. Adams Apple Award for Best Television Newscast is a "Best of Show" category at the annual CMA spring conference. The awards are named in honor David L. Adams, a longtime College Media Association stalwart and adviser at Indiana University, who died in 2007. Appalachian State University and the University of Connecticut were second and third after Delta.

CMA represents advisors to the nation’s collegiate media outlets, with more than 800 members nationwide. More than 1,200 college students and their advisors took part in this year’s convention, including a team of eight from the Collegiate. In an onsite copy editing contest, the Collegiate’s Franklin Thornton earned third place for demonstrating keen knowledge of grammar, punctuation, Associated Press style, current events, politics and geography.

View the winning DeltaBeat newscast. Read the full list of the 2019 David L. Adams Awards and past winners.