The Radio Television Digital News Association [RTDNA] awarded WGLT, Bloomington-Normal’s Public Media and part of the NPR Network, two regional Edward R. Murrow Awards. The region includes Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio.
WGLT won in two categories for small market radio. The first category is News Series for Life under Oak Wood, a four-part investigation by Content Director Ryan Denham and Graduate Assistant Ben Howell about how Oak Wood's acquisition of five mobile home parks in Bloomington-Normal has impacted their residents. The second category is Breaking News Coverage for WGLT’s reporting on a triple murder-suicide in Bloomington, including contributions from the entire WGLT newsroom who captured the immediate news and then subsequent events as they unfolded.
WGLT is the only small station in Illinois to receive two Regional Awards and now advances to the National Murrow Award competition.
The RTDNA Edward R. Murrow Awards are among the most prestigious in broadcast and digital news. The RTDNA has been honoring outstanding achievements in electronic journalism with the Edward R. Murrow Awards since 1971. Award recipients demonstrate the spirit of excellence that Murrow set as a standard for the profession of broadcast and digital journalism. In the last 20 years, WGLT has amassed 42 Regional Murrow Awards and six National Murrow Awards, including the 2025 National Murrow Award for investigative reporting.
“The WGLT newsroom continues to raise the bar,” said Executive Director R.C. McBride. “From seasoned journalists with decades of experience to correspondents and student interns who are just getting started, everyone contributes to producing the highest-quality journalism our community deserves, and we celebrate their hard work and these well-deserved additional accolades."
