March 19, 2008

A ‘Mark of Excellence’

Transcript sports columnist Drew Lenox shows off the Mark of Excellence Award he earned at the Society for Professional Journalists’ Region 4 Spring Conference.

Lenox received his award March 15 during the SPJ Region 4 Spring Conference in Pittsburgh. He earned third place for “sports column writing” in a competition that featured students from 18 colleges and universities across Michigan, Ohio, western Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. Overall, 377 entries were received for the regional collegiate competition, which awarded certificates in categories covering newspaper, magazine, radio, television, and online journalism.

A junior from Grove City, Ohio, Lenox submitted three columns for the competition and was judged on that overall body of work. His favorite is a piece from November 1, 2007, titled “This year’s NFL school bully is Pat, and he wants to brawl.”

Lenox has been writing regularly for the Transcript since fall 2006 and says his OWU experience has helped him to understand and appreciate different writing styles.

“Through working with the paper and the classes I have taken, I have learned how to report and write for a newspaper,” he says. “In writing my column, I’ve learned to write in a different way. I have learned to combine analysis and opinion into writing still a fact-based piece. It is very different than a feature story or a paper for another class.”

Lenox currently is working as an intern for Columbus Sports Network (CSN), which provides comprehensive television and Internet coverage of central Ohio sporting events. As part of the University’s Web streaming program, he serves as an audio commentator at all home football games and select home basketball games.

“I'm now in my third semester writing ‘Thoughts from the Third Row,’ and I have a great time doing that,” Lenox says. “I liked the time I spent just reporting on sports, and the broadcasting I get to do as the color commentator for OWU football is such a great experience. … I hope I am building a good resume in many areas and that, when I graduate, I can combine my journalistic ability with my interest in sports.”

So what’s Lenox’s dream job?

“I would love to be one of those guys on ESPN that people like me sit at home and disagree with,” he says. “It doesn’t have to be at ESPN, but somewhere. It could be writing, reporting, announcing, or something I haven’t tried yet. But as long as I am in sports, I’ll be happy.”

Transcript advisor and Assistant Professor of Journalism Melinda Rhodes, says Lenox is well on his way to achieving his goal. One of his biggest strengths, she says, is his consistency in producing quality work.

“Drew is dependable, reliable, and understands deadlines,” Rhodes says. “He works really hard at what he does, and he does it well. He addresses the sports world with a certain amount of intellectuality, which is appreciated, without losing his humor and insight.”

Rhodes, who also attended the SPJ Region 4 Spring Conference, says she was intrigued by the overview of changes that social networking, virtual worlds, and other advancements are having, and will continue to have, on today’s journalists.

Although strong reporting and writing skills will remain vital, Rhodes says, “I think we have to prepare students to get used to working across different types of media.”

One important step in that direction is creating more of an online presence for the Transcript, she says. By fall, Rhodes hopes the weekly student newspaper will be part of a network that supports video and audio clips, as well as more timely text updates. Currently, PDF copies of the Transcript are posted online each week.

To read Lenox’s award-winning “Thoughts from the Third Row,” or other Transcript articles, visit transcript.owu.edu.

– Cole Hatcher