WUOT, JEM Faculty Win Regional Edward R. Murrow Awards

Jacqui Sieber remembers watching the synchronous fireflies in her backyard as a kid.

But, the All Things Considered host and WUOT 91.9 FM reporter had never heard about a lottery to watch them, such as the one the Great Smoky Mountain National Park Service holds annually. She thought there was a story there and pitched that idea to her WUOT editors. 

It turned out to be an award-winning idea, as her work was honored with a 2024 regional Edward R. Murrow Award in the “excellence in sound” category for radio.

“I thought it was somewhat surreal,” Sieber said. “I was proud of my work, but the fact that it got the regional award was a pleasant surprise.”

The Radio Television Digital News Association annually announces Edward R. Murrow Award winners— an honor reserved for those who have shown outstanding achievements in broadcast and digital journalism.

This year’s award was Sieber’s first Murrow award. As someone who loves animals and nature, she recalls being very excited about the story and aspires to do more environmental reporting. This is partly why she enrolled in the College of Communication and Information master’s program with a concentration in journalism to expand her skill set as a journalist while working at WUOT.

Sieber’s reporting on the fireflies in the Great Smoky Mountains also earned her an East Tennessee Society of Professional Journalists award earlier this year—one of several awards WUOT received.

Sieber and WUOT were not the only Edward R. Murrow Award winners with CCI connections this year.

School of Journalism and Media Assistant Professor of Practice Brittany Tarwater (‘09) also won regional Edward R. Murrow Awards for her work with WVLT on the original documentary A Tennessee Waltz: Ray Blanton’s Last Dance. The documentary won in the “news documentary” and “excellence in innovation” categories. 

A Tennessee Waltz: Ray Blanton’s Last Dance covered the behind-the-scenes story of how Tennessee Democrats and Republicans banded together to remove former Gov. Ray Blanton from power after he became embroiled in a clemency for cash scandal in the late 1970s.

“The Murrows are a really humbling honor,” Tarwater said. “It’s been really fun to watch the excitement around this story grow, and it is truly an honor and just a reflection on the team that worked on this story to be recognized at this level.”

Tarwater said awards like these also provide more exposure to such stories. She still finds it rewarding to hear from people who were impacted by the events surrounding the Blanton administration. She added it is also fun to learn that many people are still discovering this part of Tennessee history for the first time.

WVLT News also won a Murrow award in the “overall excellence” category. Tarwater said she was not surprised that WVLT News won, adding every single person at the Knoxville station is reflected in the composite submitted for judges’ review

Tarwater said among that team are several former and current University of Tennessee, Knoxville, students, which she believes speaks to the excellence of the program in producing quality journalists and its commitment to local journalism.

“It’s just a reflection of the work and our dedication to the community that we live in that we do every day,” Tarwater said. “I think it really is a testament to the commitment of the team to serving East Tennessee.”