The School of Communications alumnus and a colleague won the biennial Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Television Political Journalism for an in-depth program focused on women's health rights and abortion in Texas.
A political news show produced by Elon University School of Communications alumnus Kevin Kline ’09 for KXAN in Austin, Texas, won the Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Television Political Journalism. The show, titled “State of Texas: In-Depth,” won for local stations in a large market.
The honored story covered the continuing debate in Texas surrounding women’s health and abortion. In a release, judges for the award, which is presented just once every two years, praised the show for its “crisp and informative” coverage.
They added that, “This reporting even-handedly lays out the effects this will have on Texas residents, giving anyone who watched it a richer understanding of the issue.”
Kline worked on the story with colleague Josh Hinkle. And this isn’t the first time the duo have been recognized for their work. Previously, Kline and Hinkle won the Lone State Emmy for Politics/Government – Programs/Special/Feature/Segment twice (in 2013 and 2014) for the program, “In Session. In Depth.,” which has since been renamed “State of Texas: In-Depth.”
“I want to thank the amazing faculty and staff at Elon for giving me the tools to think critically, as well as the support to follow my passions,” Kline said. “Without the guidance from people like (associate professor) Rich Landesberg and the entire School of Communications, I would not be where I am today.”
A former news director of then-Phoenix14News (now Elon Local News), Kline will travel to Washington, D.C., in May with Hinkle to accept the award. KXAN is an NBC affiliate owned by Media General.
According to the Walter Cronkite Award website, the award for “Excellence in Television Political Journalism, given biennially since 2000, is named for the distinguished journalist and longtime CBS anchor. The award encourages and showcases journalistic excellence in political coverage, particularly innovative, issue-focused coverage that informs viewers about their electoral choices and recognizes coverage that helps viewers understand who the candidates are, what the issues are, and how the electoral choices will affect their lives.”