ALBANY -- The New York State Associated Press Broadcasters Association has named finalists for its 2011 radio and TV awards. NYSAPBA will reveal first place winners and "special mention" winners at its annual awards banquet in June. Here are the categories which include finalists within the CNYRadio.com and CNYTVNews.com coverage area:
First, a quick refresher on how the AP handles its awards. You won't see any "Class 1" finalists here because the Class 1 competition is limited to the New York City metro only. Class 2 includes mid-level markets like Syracuse, Buffalo, Rochester and Albany. Class 3 includes everything else.
For the "Best Regularly Scheduled News Program" category, entries were only accepted for newscasts which aired on one of two "AP Contest Days," which are randomly selected and unannounced until the day-of. Based on the nominations, it appears those two contest days in 2011 were November 10 and December 7.
Television
Category 1: BEST REGULARLY SCHEDULED LOCAL NEWS PROGRAM
CLASS 2
- WHAM, Rochester, 13WHAM News at 6--Beth Swereda, Don Alhart, Evan White, Sean Carroll, Matt Malyn, Corinne Gensler
- WSYR News Channel 9, Syracuse, Best Regularly Scheduled Local News Program 12/7/11, 5pm-6:30pm--Staff
- WXXA, Albany, FOX23 News at 10pm 11-10-11--WXXA News Staff
- Notable: All three stations are owned by Newport Television.
Category 2 BEST NEWS SPECIAL/DOCUMENTARY
CLASS 2
- WHAM, Rochester, 13 WHAM News, They Were Just 11--Sean Carroll, Aaron Hurley, Nate Miller, Mark Schuman, Don Alhart
- WXXI, Rochester, Need to Know Rochester: A Challenge to Rochester Schools-- Julie Philipp, Helene Biandudi, Marty Kaufman, Jeff Beach
- YNN, Syracuse, Force on Force-- Brian Dwyer, Curtis Jetter
CLASS 3
- WKTV, Utica, Boilermaker 2011--News Staff
Category 3 BEST NEWS SERIES
CLASS 2
- WSYR News Channel 9, Syracuse, Gold Star Mom--Jeff Kulikowsky, Jan Carabeo, Marty Sicilia
- WXXA, Albany, Picking up the Pieces--Katherine Underwood, Brian Flynn
- YNN, Albany, Everybody has a Story--Dan Keese, Steve Ference
CLASS 3
- WENY, Elmira, Tech of Tomorrow--J.B. Biunno
- WKTV, Utica, Where In CNY are Don and Megan--Don Shipman, Kirk Tupaj, Megan Koskovich, Keith Hunt
- WWNY, Watertown, The War Within--Katie Alexander
Category 4 BEST INTERVIEW
CLASS 2
- WHAM, Rochester, 13 WHAM News, Slashing Victim Shares Story--Jane Flasch, Paul Giovine
- WIVB, Buffalo, Survivor Thanks Her Rescuer--Joe Schlaerth, Lorey Schultz
- WSYR, Syracuse, News Channel 9, Carrie Lazarus, Bobby Davis & Gloria Allred 12/15/11--Carrie Lazarus, Dave Bullard
CLASS 3
- WENY, Elmira, Acceptance: Troy's Greg Congdon Battles Homophobia--Andy Malnoske, WENY Elmira
- WENY, Elmira, Shawn Campbell's Journey to Justice--Jane Park, Scott Cook
- WKTV, Utica, Congressman Hanna Interview--Dave Dellecese
Category 5 BEST SPOT NEWS COVERAGE
CLASS 2
- WHAM, Rochester, 13 WHAM News, Rep. Chris Lee Resigns--Sean Carroll, Evan White, Katherine Loy, Adam Chodak, Don Alhart, Ginny Ryan
- WSYR, Syracuse, News Channel 9, Massive Flooding 9/8/11--Staff
- WXXA, Albany, Covering Occupy Albany 12-22-12--WXXA News Staff
Category 6 BEST CONTINUING NEWS COVERAGE
CLASS 2
- WGRZ, Buffalo, Amusement Park Ride Inspection Records --Staff
- WIVB, Buffalo, The Bully Project--Joe Schlaerth
- WSYR, Syracuse, News Channel 9, Bernie Fine Scandal--Staff
Category 8 BEST FEATURE
CLASS 2
- WGRZ, Buffalo, Chase's Incredible Progress --Sarah Hopkins
- WSYR, Syracuse, News Channel 9, Lion King Makeup 9/29/11--Kaylea Nixon, Jim Beebe
- WXXA, Albany, Darnell Glenn--Torie Wells, Michael Wickham
CLASS 3
- WENY, Elmira, In Your Shoes: Corning Museum of Glass--Joe Melillo
- WKTV, Utica, In Focus--Kristen Copeland, Chris Walsh, Keith Hunt
- WWNY, Watertown, Somebody's Gotta Do It--Sarah Compo
Category 10 GENERAL EXCELLENCE OF INDIVIDUAL REPORTING
CLASS 2
- WHAM, Rochester, 13 WHAM News, Reporting by Chris Conte--Chris Conte
- WIVB, Buffalo, Rich Newberg--Rich Newberg
- YNN, Syracuse, Brian Dwyer--Brian Dwyer
Category 11 GENERAL EXCELLENCE IN PHOTOJOURNALISM
CLASS 2
- WGRZ, Buffalo, Dooley O'Rourke Composite--Dooley O'Rourke
- YNN, Syracuse, Jim Gibbons--Jim Gibbons
- YNN, Albany, Stories By Brad Wilson--Brad Wilson
Category 12 BEST WEBSITE
CLASS 2
- WGRZ, Buffalo, Attica Prison Riot: 40 Years Later--Staff
- WIVB, Buffalo, WIVB.COM--Joe Schlaerth, Chris Woodard
- YNN, Syracuse, YNN.com -- Upstate New York's Interactive Web Channel--YNN.com web team
CLASS 3
- WETM, Elmira, WETM 18 News Website--James Carl, Staff
- WKTV, Utica, WKTV.com--Staff
RADIO
Category 2 BEST NEWS SPECIAL/DOCUMENTARY
CLASS 3
- WRVO, Oswego, Transforming Long Term Care in CNY--Joyce Gramza
- WSKG, Binghamton, Community Conversation: The Flood of 2011--Crystal Sarakas
Category 3 BEST NEWS SERIES
CLASS 3
- WRVO, Oswego, Concussions--Ellen Abbott
- WRVO, Oswego, What to do with Syracuse's unused buildings--Ryan Morden, Rachel Ward
- WSKG, Binghamton, 9 Seconds--Matt Richmond, Kathleen Harrison Cook, Crystal Sarakas, Gregory Keeler
Category 4 BEST INTERVIEW
CLASS 3
- WRVO, Oswego, Interview with tabla drum master Ustad Tari Khan--Mark Lavonier
- WSKG, Binghamton, Community Conversation: Talking About Complex Issues--Crystal Sarakas
Category 6 BEST CONTINUING NEWS COVERAGE
CLASS 3
- WRVO, Oswego, AIDS at 30: More about teens and less about adults--Ellen Abbott
Category 7 BEST ENTERPRISE REPORTING
CLASS 3
- WRVO, Oswego, Prom, Body Image and Eating Disorders--Joyce Gramza
CLASS 3
- WRVO, Oswego, Maple syrup farming brings a family together--Dave Bullard
Category 11 GENERAL EXCELLENCE IN USE OF MEDIUM
CLASS 3
- WRVO, Oswego, Remembering The Cardiff Giant--A. Randall Wenner
CLASS 2
- WBEN-AM, Buffalo, Buffalo's News Site: WBEN.com--Dave Debo, Tell Vickers, Tim Wenger
- WBFO, Buffalo, wbfo.org--Timothy Nabzdyk, Eileen Buckley
- WXXI Radio, InnovationTrail.org--Innovation Trail Staff
- Note: We listed this because The Innovation Trail project is a joint effort between many stations, including Oswego's WRVO.
Congratulations to all of the finalists on a job well done! The full list of finalists is available on the NYSAPBA website.
