Congratulations 2024 Distinguished Journalist Award honorees
Congratulations to SPJ/LA’s 2024 Distinguished Journalist honorees!
It was a wonderful evening as journalists throughout Southern California gathered at Castaway Restaurant in Burbank to honor and celebrate the remarkable careers of seven local journalists, a journalism educator and two student journalists.
The night kicked off with SPJ/LA president Alexi Chidbachian speaking about the importance and mission of SPJ, its impact on local journalism, and how the banquet benefits our chapter’s student scholarships.
Veteran radio anchor and longtime SPJ/LA board member Frank Mottek emceed the event.
Keynote speaker, CBS 60 Minutes correspondent Bill Whitaker, delivered a powerful and moving speech in which he discussed his upbringing, why he pursued journalism, detailed his first job, and talked about the current state of journalism and where it’s heading.
Each honoree was introduced by a colleague or loved one who shared stories of their careers.
Univision correspondent Salvador Duran, who won in the broadcast category was introduced by SPJ/LA member Eleanore Vega.
In the audio category, honoree Margaret Carrero was introduced by Pete Demetriou.
In the category of print 90,000+ circulation, honoree Louis Sahagun was introduced by Steve Padilla.
In the print category for a publication with less than 90,000, Toni Sciacqua was introduced by Frank Pine, executive editor of the Southern California Newspaper Group.
In our newest category of print mirco/community, H. Susan Henderson, the publisher and editor of Mountain Views News was introduced by her youngest granddaughter Milania Thomas.
In the category of digital media, honoree Ashley Alvarado was introduced by LAist chief content officer Kristen Muller.
Francine Orr, our honoree in the visual media category was unable to attend the banquet due to participating in a Knight fellowship at Ohio University. Orr submitted a video to say thank you and showcase her work.
Journalism teacher at Daniel Pearl Magnet High School, Adriana Chavira, was the recipient of the Freedom of Information award. She was introduced on stage by her friend and former co-worker Glenda Hurtado.
And lastly, we honored one of our two student honorees, Cebelihle Hlatshwayo, who recently graduated from Santa Monica College. Student honoree Anne To was unable to attend due currently working in Berkeley.
Congratulations to all honorees and thank you to everyone who attended!
