LMU Magazine and Loyola Marymount University faculty and students gained recognition for creative and journalism work with awards from the L.A. Press Club and CASE, the Council for Advancement and Support of Education.
Both sets of awards were announced in June 2022.
LMU Magazine’s cover story for its summer 2021 issue, “Crowning Achievement,” garnered the lion’s share of Press Club awards, including: second place for writing on race and society for the story “Crowns,” by Janice Rhoshalle Littlejohn ’90; third place for “Crowns” in the photo essay category, photos by University Photographer Jon Rou (view a behind-the-scenes video of the photo shoot); and third place for general excellence for in-house/corporate publication.
Taking third place in the writing – activism journalism category was Evelyn McDonnell, professor of Journalism, for her essay “Cougar Town,” in the LMU Magazine summer 2021 issue.
LMU Magazine has won a total of 90 awards in both major media and higher education competitions since it was launched in July 2010. In the press club awards categories announced this year, LMU Magazine finished ahead of entries from the Los Angeles Times, Variety, Hollywood Reporter and KCET, and other less-widely known outlets.
Two LMU students from the Los Angeles Loyolan, Chris Benis, current Loyolan editor in chief and Owen Tait, a former video staff member, won second place for Best TV Reporting for the Loyolan’s social-justice video “Speak Up and Dribble.” The Loyolan is LMU’s student-run newspaper which highlighted this piece as a larger package focused on athletes using their platforms for social change and features members of the LMU women’s basketball team.
LMU journalism student Sophia Villamor won third place in the Best Arts Writing, student media category. Her essay, “Harry Styles’ ‘Pleasing’ and the Authenticity of Celebrity Brands,” is a think piece on the new trend of celebrity brands and endorsement, using Harry Styles’ “Pleasing” as an example. It was published in The Lion, a digital news outlet founded in 2020 and dedicated to covering the city of Los Angeles and surrounding communities. Stories published by The Lion are written and produced by undergraduate students studying journalism at Loyola Marymount University.
The CASE Circle of Excellence Awards for 2022 also recognized the “Crowning Achievement” issue of LMU Magazine with a gold designation for cover design, a grand gold designation for photography for Rou’s cover photo, and a gold designation for Rou’s series of photos with “Crowns.” McDonnell’s “Cougar Town” essay was given a bronze designation.
