Broadcast journalism student to compete in Hearst national championship

University of Nebraska-Lincoln broadcast journalism student Chris Welch of Dakota Dunes, S.D., will compete in the 45th annual National Broadcast News Championships of the Hearst Journalism Awards Program.

Welch is one of five finalists from around the country to have been selected and qualified for the 2005 Broadcast News Television Championship.

There are 105 colleges and universities with accredited undergraduate journalism schools that participate in the program, which is often called the Pulitzers of college journalism. Funded and administered for 45 years by the William Randolph Hearst Foundation, the program awards more than $400,000 a year in scholarships, grants and stipends under the auspices of the Association of Schools of Journalism and Mass Communication.

The finalists will participate in rigorous spot assignments -- competing for additional awards ranging from $1,500 to $5,000 -- in the program's national championships May 25-29 in San Francisco. Broadcast news radio, writing and photo finalists will also compete in the national championships.

The judges, all professionals in radio and television, are: Terry Connelly, senior vice president and general manager, The Weather Channel, Atlanta; Felicia Middlebrooks, morning anchor and correspondent, WBBM Radio, Chicago; and Tom Negovan, anchor and investigative reporter, KYW-TV, Philadelphia.

CONTACT: Will Norton Jr., Dean, Journalism & Mass Communications, (402) 472-8269