NW Missouri Times

Northwest Missouri State University’s Student Media group earned 34 awards at the MediaFest ’25 national convention in Washington, D.C., held October 15-18. The event was organized by the College Media Association, Associated Collegiate Press, and Society of Professional Journalists.

The university’s student-managed television station, KNWT, received recognition as Video Outlet of the Year from the College Media Association. Will Murphy, advisor for KNWT, described the award as confirmation of Northwest’s commitment to profession-based learning. “We push to get hands-on with media as soon as you hit campus,” he said. “We create environments where students can create what they want instead of just a few limited categories of content, and we put equipment and facilities in their hands that make this possible. Because of all this, I feel that our students can spend more time on task than their peers, can be more creative with fewer restrictions and are better prepared for the world beyond our program.”

Northwest Student Media includes several outlets: the Northwest Missourian newspaper, Tower yearbook, KNWT television station, and KZLX radio. Collectively, these outlets won 28 Pinnacle awards—five of which were first-place honors—alongside two ACP Of the Year honors (including a newspaper Pinnacle finalist award) and four Best in Show recognitions.

Hannah Claywell, editor-in-chief of the Northwest Missourian newspaper who attended the convention in Washington D.C., commented on receiving third place in Best in Show Newspaper contest at MediaFest ’25. “Being able to attend a nationwide convention and return with so many awards is surreal,” Claywell said. “It truly shows how much hard work everyone who is a part of the Missourian puts in and how amazing our program at Northwest is.”

Additional honors included an honorable mention for Design of the Year for Tower yearbook’s cover titled “Tower 2025 In Motion.” The Northwest Missourian was also named a Pacemaker finalist.