KPCC’s Susan Valot and KCRW’s Kim Masters were recognized among best journalists in Los Angeles.
Valot, a reporter who covers Orange County for Pasadena’s KPCC, was lauded by Press Club judges for producing “well-rounded reports with an authoritative, informed tone” and making great use of sound.
Masters, a former NPR correspondent who now covers Hollywood for KCRW in Santa Monica, was named top entertainment journalist. Judges cited her voicing and thorough, substantive reporting on L.A.’s entertainment business.
KPCC’s newsroom won top recognition in four categories of the radio division: for feature reporting by Madeleine Brand and Kristen Muller; entertainment reporting/criticism by Larry Mantle; use of sound by Kevin Ferguson; and the talk/public affairs program Airtalk with Larry Mantle.
Another top radio prize went to Jim Rondeau of KCLU in Thousand Oaks. On the merits of his “conversational yet authoritative newscast,” Rondeau was named top radio anchor.
SoCal Connected, flagship local news program of KCET, won first-place awards in three TV news categories: investigative reporting in “Protected or Neglected,” which examined problems with workplace safety regulation; entertainment reporting in “Celluloid Ceiling,” examining career challenges of female film directors; and talk/public affairs program. Cited for the awards were Bret Marcus, Justine Schmidt, Rick Wilkinson, Judy Muller, Michael Bloecher, Anne Lilburn, Karen Foshay, Vince Gonzales, Lata Pandya and Alberto Arce.