SUNY Old Westbury students and recent graduates in the American Studies/Media and Communications Department recently earned Folio Awards for their multimedia work in 2023. The awards, run by the Fair Media Council, recognize the best in news and social media coverage, and were presented during an Awards Luncheon in June.
In the Arts & Culture- Student category, OWTV won for "An Interview with an Artist: Felsoldt." Rene DeLorenzo conducted and edited the interview, along with Erik Darmstadt, Nasir Fanfan, Sebastian Jasinski, and Brandon Ortega.
Old Westbury Web Radio OWWR won in the Best News Podcast- Student category. The podcast, "New Media Beat: What's New in World Media?" was produced by Michael Green with Jacob Friedenburg serving as engineer. Stephany Okenwa and Kayla Sedotto were the hosts of the podcast, with correspondents Ananda Hoggard-Shannon, Casim Jewsbury, Emma Koutsis, Anthony Moyett, Alyssa Quattrini, Jadda Turner and Joanna Vissichelli.
In addition, two members of the Old Westbury community were selected to serve as judges in different categories for the Folio Awards. Michael Kinane, Vice President for Communications & College Relations joined returning judge Dr. Özgür Akgün, an assistant professor in the American Studies/Media and Communications department, who is also manager of the Media Innovation Center (MIC). They were selected due to their professional accomplishments and demonstrated commitment to the community.
Developed in the 1980s as a way to encourage and reward Long Island news, the Folio Awards have grown over the years. Expansion of news categories to include New York regional and National news as well as social media categories for campaigns that seek to inform, educate or inspire are qualified for entry. Today, a Folio Award is regarded as the gold standard for news that matters
The Fair Media Council is a nonprofit organization that is recognized as one of the oldest, most successful media watchdogs in the country today.