BackStage Pass, Faces of Flint, Flint news coverage among Best in Category winnersEAST LANSING, Mich. --- WKAR Public Media at Michigan State University was honored with multiple awards from the Michigan Association of Broadcasters at the Broadcast Excellence Awards 2016 ceremony March 8 in Lansing, Mich. Across WKAR-TV and WKAR-FM 90.5, the stations earned seven Best in Category awards and five Merit awards.
More than 950 entries from 87 Michigan stations and companies were judged this year by members of the Illinois Broadcasters Association.
“I hope I can speak for our amazing, dedicated team when I say it’s gratifying and rewarding to be honored like this by our peers in the industry," said Susi Elkins, MSU director of broadcasting and WKAR general manager. "Our viewers and listeners expect that they can always turn to WKAR for quality programming that tells the stories and explores the issues that matter in their community, and these awards provide just one measure that signals that we are doing our job.”
In the Public Television division, the WKAR Best in Category awards were for:
- Cultural and Performing Arts: BackStage Pass -- Toronzo Cannon
- Independent Producer: Invisible Wounds
- Marketing Materials and Promos: WKAR Sizzle Spot 2016
- Membership Appeal: Sunday Dramas -- Tim Busfield
- Special Interest Programming: Faces of Flint
The TV Merit awards were for:
- Cultural Programming: Forte – Mason High School
- Independent Producer: Inside Peace
- Membership Appeal: Join WKAR Team – Al Martin
- Public TV Station of the Year Essay
In Public Radio Group One, WKAR's Best in Category awards were for:
- Community Involvement: Neighbors in Action: Help for Flint
- Hard News & Current Events Story: Filters for Flint
The radio Merit award was for the Public Radio Station of the Year essay.
“We’d also like to congratulate our colleagues at WTVS-TV, WGVU-FM and Michigan Radio for their Public Station of the Year wins,” said Elkins.
WKAR provides Michigan’s capital region and the global community with award-winning original programming and the best from PBS and NPR via television channels WKAR-HD, WKAR World, WKAR Create and WKAR PBS Kids; and radio broadcasts at 90.5 FM, AM 870 and WKAR Radio Reading Service. At wkar.org and video.wkar.org, the network offers live audio streaming, plus local news features, TV original full episodes and the best from NPR and PBS on-demand. The WKAR provides additional community outreach with WKAR Ready to Learn Service and PBS LearningMedia. WKAR is funded in large part by community viewer and listener contributions with additional support from Michigan State University and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
