© 2024 WNIJ and WNIU
Northern Public Radio
801 N 1st St.
DeKalb, IL 60115
815-753-9000
Northern Public Radio
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Sue Stephens Wins National Award

WNIJ's Sue Stephens has won first place in the nationwide Public Radio News Directors Inc. (PRNDI) Awards for Best Writing, presented Saturday night in Cleveland OH.

She won the award for her story "Rick's Picks: Cheap Trick guitarist's life on display in Rockford," a feature which aired during Morning Edition on August 13, 2012.

The story chronicled the Burpee Museum of Natural History exhibition of guitars and other memorabilia from the collection of Rick Nielsen, founder of the Rockford-based rock band Cheap Trick, and interviews with Nielsen and his son Miles.

Stephens competed against public radio news departments and reporters in Division B from across the country in winning this award.

You can hear this award-winning story and peruse photos from the exhibit by clicking on  the Related Content link below.

Earlier this year, Stephens also was named "Best Newswriter" in the Illinois Associated Press Broadcasters Association competition. She also won first-place AP awards for Best Light Feature for her story "Fifty Years of Old-School Country at WLUV" and Best Use of Sound for her story "Maple Sugaring in Illinois."

Stephens currently serves as vice president of the Illinois News Broadcasters Association.

Formerly WNIJ’s News Director, she asked to return to the role of full-time reporter/anchor in 2010. She says her goal is "to tell the most compelling stories in the fewest words possible … all the better if a little humor can be thrown into the mix."

Related Stories