When the University of Georgia honors the recipients of its annual Peabody Awards on June 4, those 35 winners will represent a broad array of work in news and entertainment. But if there is a common thread in many of the news pieces, it is war.
That’s not surprising given the mindset in America today. The awards often reflect the tenor of the times. Many of last year’s recipients covered the impact of Hurricane Katrina, the biggest news story of 2005.
This year marks the 66th year for the awards, which are administered by the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism & Mass Communication and formally known as the George Foster Peabody Awards. The winners will be honored June 4 at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York. Bob Costas will be the master of ceremonies.
“We have selected what amounts to a cross-section of the media this year,” said Horace Newcomb, director of the Peabody Awards. “We saw really outstanding local news this year, and much of that was focused on larger stories that exceeded the bounds of their local community. Local stations went to Washington, Iraq, Baghdad. They took on local industries that were major contributors to their communities but had made major mistakes. We are seeing the local stories reach out to much larger issues. We had several large stories that focused on education.”
The pieces related to war issues delved into topics such as Latinos in the military, defective parts on helicopters, head injuries to U.S. Marines due to a lack of helmet padding, and military medicine.
“What I see is a continuing commitment to finding important stories and pursuing them regardless of the cost,” Mr. Newcomb said.
In this special report, TelevisionWeek takes a closer look at the Peabody-winning projects in the realm of broadcast journalism.
66th Annual Peabody Awards
Where: Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, New York
When: June 4
Who: Bob Costas will host.
For the complete list of winners, go to peabody.uga.edu.