WUSF Wins Prestigious National Edward R. Murrow Award for Excellence in Reporting on Tumultuous Events of 2024

WUSF journalists persevered to cover news and provide information amid multiple hurricanes and national elections.

TAMPA, Fla. (August 15, 2025) -- WUSF this week was honored to win the nation’s highest award in digital and broadcast journalism – a national Edward R. Murrow award – recognizing WUSF for "Overall Excellence" in producing a range of news stories about the tumultuous events of 2024.

The Murrow awards recognize journalism excellence produced in local and national broadcasting newsrooms, and they are considered the most prestigious broadcast journalism awards in the United States. WUSF competed against regional award winners from across the country, representing the nation's top 50 media markets.

“This Murrow symbolizes an incredible body of work in a year of significant impacts on our community,” said WUSF General Manager JoAnn Urofsky. “The WUSF team reported, analyzed, and alerted people during dangerous weather. They kept people informed in election season and helped make sense of the devastating hurricanes that hit our community. WUSF’s commitment to local journalism stands strong.”

Images from the WUSF Instagram Reels with reporter Stephanie Colombini reporting on hurricane impacts in Tampa Bay. SOURCE: WUSF

A non-profit broadcaster licensed to the University of South Florida, WUSF is this region’s home for NPR, blending reports from around the world with local news stories produced by a local team of journalists focused on the mission of serving the residents of Florida with clear and objective news and information broadcast on radio, online, mobile and podcasts.

Reflecting the level of journalism recognized by these awards, WUSF shared national honors with NBC News coverage of the assassination attempt on Donald Trump, Reveal/The Associated Press covering Vladimir Putin’s war machine, and video productions by The Washington Post about FEMA’s search for missing people after floods in North Carolina.

The Murrow awards recognized WUSF’s journalism across broadcast, digital and social media, including nearly 20 individual stories, podcast segments and live breaking news coverage, along with blog posts and web pages.

The award overall recognized work completed during a tumultuous year for the region that included three major hurricanes. WUSF's staff focused on helping the residents of Florida prepare for storms, and then provided more than 30 combined hours of live coverage as the storms came ashore. In the aftermath, WUSF journalists fanned out across the region to investigate and convey the storms' impacts; coverage that continues to this day.

With the 2024 hurricane season still in full swing, WUSF's reporters had to shift some of their focus to covering national and local elections. The station had laid the groundwork for coverage early in the year, surveying voters to learn about the issues that mattered to them. Reporters held listening sessions to better inform their stories and focused on three key areas: The economy, immigration and abortion.

The station also led an initiative with other public media stations around the state to publish a Voter Guide, and the “Florida Matters” team produced a 19-episode podcast called “Our Changing State” that focused on informing a younger audience about the elections.

Instagram Reels became an additional home for WUSF's elections coverage produced during the hurricanes. More than 100 posts and reels produced more than 1 million views, reaching an audience beyond WUSF’s radio and online presence.

The WUSF team will be recognized with the award at a special gala event in New York this October.

Media Contact:

Richard Mullins

(813) 228-0652 X-1127

[email protected]

About WUSF

WUSF is a comprehensive media organization that provides media services to the community and businesses through public broadcasting and multi-media production services. Licensed to the University of South Florida, WUSF serves the public interest through programming, educational outreach and community partnerships. For more information, visit www.wusf.org.

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