Southeastern Channel students win national videography awards
Tuesday, March 17, 2020 
by: Tonya Lowentritt
NATIONAL VIDEOGRAPHY WINNERS - Southeastern Louisiana University students Amanda Kitch of Covington (left) and Dylan Domangue of Houma have been honored by the Society of Professional Journalists with national second-place Mark of Excellence Awards for their videography in stories produced for the Southeastern Channel. Kitch won in “Broadcast Feature Videography” for her feature story produced for the student newscast “Northshore News,” while Domangue won in “Broadcast Sports Videography” for his story produced for the student sportscast, “The Big Game.”
HAMMOND – A pair of Southeastern Louisiana University students at the Southeastern
Channel have received second place national honors for their videography work by the
Society of Professional Journalists in its 2019 national Mark of Excellence Awards
competition.
Students Amanda Kitch of Covington and Dylan Domangue of Houma won National Finalist
recognition for placing in the top two in the nation for “Broadcast Feature Videography”
and “Broadcast Sports Videography,” respectively.
“I feel honored for my collegiate work to be recognized on a national level,”
Kitch said. “I’ve always produced my work to meet my own personal standards, so it’s
special to know that my work has been recognized at a national level with those competitive
standards, too.”
“The Society of Professional Journalists is well known and respected, and I know
there were plenty of nominations for sports videography,” Domangue said. “Being a
top two national finalist is a dream come true, and it’s an award I’m extremely proud
of.”
Kitch and Domangue became eligible for the national awards after placing first
in their categories at the Region 12 Mark of Excellence competition against students
from all universities in Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas and Tennessee. The Southeastern
Channel led all universities in the region with nine awards, including four first-place
awards.
Kitch was honored in “Broadcast Feature Videography” for the feature story, “Mosquito
Control,” that she produced for the student newscast “Northshore News.” She won a
first-place regional Mark of Excellence award for the story, as well as first place
in “Broadcast News Videography” for her story “Krentel Homicide.” In the SPJ regionals,
Kitch won second place in “Television News Feature Reporting” for her “Mosquito Control”
story.
A 2019 Southeastern graduate, Kitch is currently a television news reporter for
WAFB-TV Ch. 4 (CBS) in Baton Rouge.
“Shooting for ‘Northshore News’ gave me a necessary element that all students
need – practice,” Kitch said. “I was able to get my hands dirty and busy with a camera
out in the field to learn how to do it in the real world.”
Domangue, a senior, was honored in the “Broadcast Sports Videography” category
for his story about the 2018 Southeastern vs. LSU basketball game in Baton Rouge produced
for the Southeastern Channel’s national award-winning sportscast, “The Big Game.”
“This award in particular is special to me because there is nothing else in the
world I would rather do than film a game and be close up to the action,” Domangue
said. “My biggest strength in filming a sport is actually knowing and understanding
the game. This knowledge allows me to anticipate what will happen and make it easier
to film the game in live action.”
The Mark of Excellence Awards honor the best of collegiate journalism from a
calendar year. SPJ industry professionals, who were directed to choose entries they
felt were the best in student journalism, judged the Mark of Excellence Awards. If
no entry met the level of excellence, no award was given.
“We’re extremely excited that Amanda and Dylan have been recognized on a national
level for their stellar videography,” said Southeastern Channel general manager Rick
Settoon. “Both are national winners for their reporting and on-camera performance
as well, and this versatility, technical and creative prowess will help them climb
the television industry ladder very quickly. It shows that the Southeastern Channel
equips students with a preeminent and unique skill set both in-front-of and behind
the camera to give them a distinct edge in the television and film marketplace.”
In its 17 years of existence, the Southeastern Channel has won over 400 national,
international and regional awards, including 17 awards and 63 nominations from the
Emmys. The channel can be seen on Charter Spectrum 199 in Tangipahoa, St. Tammany,
Livingston and St. Helena parishes along with its live 24/7 webcast and video on-demand
at www.thesoutheasternchannel.com. The Southeastern Channel can also be seen on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube
and is now available on Roku and AppleTV.
