The New York Press Club has announced that WSOU 89.5 FM is a winner in the category of “Political Coverage NYC Metro – Radio” for its 2021 Election night coverage. This is the first time WSOU was recognized with this prestigious award.

The annual New York Press Club Awards for Journalism is “an enduring tradition in New York media,” honoring excellence by writers, reporters, editors, producers, photographers, and multimedia journalists in various categories.

Five College of Communication and the Arts students were recognized for their efforts on this segment: seniors Veronica Gail, Christian Gardner and Dylan Hunt; junior John Makuch; and sophomore Ryan Henry. Earning a New York Press Club Award puts them in the company of other high-profile winners such as the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, News 12, 1010 WINS and New York Public Radio.

"WSOU has long been recognized as one of the country's top college radio stations for preprofessional development and student achievement," says Jennifer Kajzer, WSOU’s Sales and Marketing Manager. "That our audio programming can stand shoulder to shoulder with media outlets such WCBS-AM, Politico, Bloomberg Radio and Vice News speaks to the exceptional hands-on learning experience students receive at Seton Hall and WSOU. We are so proud that Christian, Dylan, John, Ryan, and Veronica have been recognized for their outstanding work and reporting abilities

College of Communication and the Arts’ Associate Dean Ryan Hudes, Ph.D. adds, “We’re thrilled the New York Press Club recognized the work of our students as part of its award program.  Rooted in the mission of WSOU 89.5 FM is a steadfast dedication to creating experiential opportunities for our students as early as their first year and this group of five students exemplify the impact in these opportunities.”

The award-winning broadcast on November 2, 2021, included live coverage of both the New Jersey’s gubernatorial and New York’s mayoral elections, as well as discussion of other elections across the country. Three students remained in the WSOU studio while two broadcasted live from Governor Phil Murphy’s campaign party headquarters. The students reported twice an hour, beginning at 8:00pm and ending at 1:30am, when the New Jersey election winner announcement was postponed to the next day.

“This is such a huge achievement — my fellow students and I are honored and excited that our hard work is being recognized,” said Gail, who is from Wayne, NJ, and graduating with a degree in visual and sound media with a concentration in TV production. “WSOU has helped us grow into the professionals we are today, and I cannot wait to apply the tools I learned here to projects I work on once I leave Seton Hall.”

Gail, who served as news director for this segment, is actively pursuing employment in media production. Hunt, a journalism major from West Babylon, NY, has accepted a position at Fox News as a podcast coordinator. Gardner, a visual and sound media major from Woodbridge, Va., will be working at ESPN as an ESPN Next Production Assistant. Undergraduates Makuch and Henry will be returning to WSOU in the fall, with Makuch serving as news director and Henry as staff representative.

The New York Press Club, an association of and for working journalists and media professionals, is a private, non-profit organization. Per its website, the awards competition is open to individuals and news organizations based or operating in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut and to individuals working elsewhere on behalf of New York metro-area news organizations. Entries are considered in 30 categories as submitted by news organizations and individual journalists from New York City, the United States and from around the globe.

The club’s Annual Awards Dinner will be held Tuesday, June 7 at the Water Club in Manhattan. Click here for tickets.

WSOU 89.5 FM, which began broadcasting in 1948, is the student-run radio station of Seton Hall University. Celebrated for its heritage status and coverage of Seton Hall athletics, WSOU's signal reaches all five boroughs of New York City and much of northern and central New Jersey and can be streamed on iHeartRadio. WSOU was the 2016 winner of the National Broadcasters Association's Marconi Award for Noncommercial Station of the Year and a repeat nominee for the Marconi Award for Best College Radio Station.