By Austin Fitzgerald

Jan. 17, 2025

Two students from the Missouri School of Journalism recently placed in the top five in the Hearst Journalism Awards Program’s Television I — Features competition. Junior Nathan Lee secured first place, while senior Hunter Walterman claimed fifth in the prestigious program, now in its 65^th year.  

Both students were recognized for stories aired on KOMU-TV, the journalism school’s professional NBC-affiliate station.

“This strong showing from Nathan and Hunter reflects well on their talent for community reporting and on the power of learning by doing with the Missouri Method,” said David Kurpius, dean of the school of journalism at the University of Missouri. “Accomplishments like this continue to show why our students are in high demand in the industry.”

Lee won first place for two stories exploring how political issues of various scales affected Missouri communities. One covered the potential impact of a Missouri ballot measure on law enforcement pensions, while the other examined the divide between Kansas City, Missouri and Kansas City, Kansas, as a microcosm of the national abortion debate.

Lee’s win comes with a guaranteed place in the Hearst National Championship this summer, along with a $3,000 scholarship and a matching grant for the journalism school.

“Nathan’s abilities to tell these important stories in a way that viewers can easily understand are remarkable,” said Professor Elizabeth Frogge, managing editor at KOMU.

Walterman took fifth place for stories on AI in agriculture, the Budweiser Clydesdales and a community picnic in rural Tebbetts, Missouri, each story showcasing a different slice of mid-Missouri life. The fifth-place finish comes with a $1,000 scholarship and a matching grant for the school.

“Hunter is a skilled storyteller who excels in shooting video, writing and editing,” Frogge added. “His stories are all fun to watch, and he deserves this recognition from Hearst.”

The 14 Hearst competitions will continue until through March, and the program will culminate in the National Championship in June, when the top winners will go head-to-head.

Read more from the Missouri School of Journalism

Ryan is deputy editor at AllSooners and covers a number of sports in and around Norman and Oklahoma City.

Working both as a journalist and a sports talk radio host, Ryan has covered the Oklahoma Sooners, the Oklahoma City Thunder, the United States Men’s National Soccer Team, the Oklahoma City Energy and more.

Since 2019, Ryan has simultaneously pursued a career as both a writer and a sports talk radio host, working for the Flagship for Oklahoma sports, 107.7 The Franchise, as well as AllSooners.com.

Ryan serves as a contributor to The Franchise’s website, TheFranchiseOK.com, which was recognized as having the “Best Website” in 2022 by the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters.

Ryan holds an associate’s degree in Journalism from Oklahoma City Community College in Oklahoma City, OK. 

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ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) – It took less than an hour of being in office for Missouri’s new Gov. Mike Kehoe to issue some new laws on undocumented immigration.

Next, the legislative branch is introducing bills to increase those efforts.

It’s estimated there are about 70,000 undocumented immigrants in Missouri, according to Pew Research Center. But there’s no avenue for the state to collect accurate numbers. Several pieces of legislation have been introduced in the Missouri General Assembly that aim to make it easier to track how many undocumented immigrants are in Missouri.

St. Louis Republican Representative Jim Murphy is one of several lawmakers sponsoring a bill that aims to collect more information on undocumented immigration. His bill would require private employers and businesses to verify the employment eligibility of every employee who is hired. Currently it’s just public employers who are required to do this.

“They’re taking union jobs, they’re taking American jobs, because they’re being paid under the table,” Murphy said.

Another bill introduced would modify Missouri driver’s licenses to include a symbol that indicates the holder is a U.S. citizen. Since it’s early in the session, bills are still being referred to committees for hearings and have not had much traction or discussion.

Missouri’s new governor, Mike Kehoe, focused on immigration in the executive orders he issued just moments after swearing into office. Kehoe’s executive orders allow for some State Troopers to train with federal law enforcement on finding undocumented immigrants, and requires law enforcement to collect immigration statuses from people accused of crimes.

Independence Democratic Representative Aaron Crossley tells me he’s tired of the discussions on immigration, which he says are not truly productive. He calls Kehoe’s and other Republicans’ efforts to legislate on immigration “political pandering.”

“They’re not lowering the cost of living, they’re not getting our roads paved, they’re not making our schools perform better,” Crossley said.

When asked about the governor’s executive orders, a spokesperson for the Missouri State Highway Patrol said in an email they do not discuss executive orders in detail, but, “will remain focused on carrying out our mission of enforcing laws and providing services to ensure a safe and secure environment for everyone in Missouri.”

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