Trojans win big at Southeast Journalism Conference

Students from the Hall School of Journalism and Communication turned competition into celebration last weekend, racking up a slate of top honors at the Southeastern Journalism Conference, where their reporting stood out among colleges across the region.  

The annual conference, held at Georgia Highlands College this year, brought together campuses from across the southeast for three days of workshops, competitions and critiques from professionals and media scholars followed by the Best of the South Awards banquet and a closing keynote address by President of Georgia Public Broadcasting Bert Huffman.  

Emma Wadsen photo

Jimmy Nichols (left) and Nathaniel Bliss (right) pose with their awards.

The 2026 on-site categories included: News Writing, TV News, Podcasting, Public Relations and more. For many students, the conference offered a chance to showcase their skills and put their knowledge and journalistic experience into practice.  

“SEJC was intense,” said Simon Brown, a senior broadcast journalism major from Hoover, Alabama. “I competed in the Arts and Entertainment Multimedia on-site competition as well as the TV News package on-site competition.” 

Brown, who also serves as lead news writer for the Tropolitan and student news director for TrojanVision, went on to win first place in the Best of the South Multimedia Journalist Award. 

The Tropolitan, TrojanVision, and Troy Public Radio represented Troy University’s student media programs while at the conference.  

Jameson Speece, a producer for Troy Public Radio and junior communications major from Hayneville, Alabama, was able to represent the radio broadcasting space well as he clinched the title of 2026 SEJC Best Radio News Reporter. 

Speece also made sure to advocate for that same space as he believes there is a gap between generations in his field.  

“Radio is a pretty small field among young people, and so, it was lovely to get to meet with some peers who are working in the same field,” Speece said. 

Troy Public Radio went on to have several more wins with Speece winning an on-site honorary mention, Reana Wallace winning Best Radio Journalist and Reace England winning Best Radio Feature Reporter, securing wins in all three radio categories.  

The conference, as well as the awards gained by students, marked a successful weekend for Troy University’s student media organizations.  

Participants said the conference challenged their limits while also reinforcing the strength and dedication needed in the journalism field.  

“As far as the competition goes, me and Simon [Brown] did two on-site competitions, which is not something I’d recommend,” said Ty Davidson, a sophomore broadcast journalism major and 5th place Best News Writer Award winner from Birmingham, Alabama. “We were doing nothing but grinding through both assignments from about 5 p.m. Thursday to 3 p.m. Friday, with about five hours of sleep somewhere in the middle.”  

Despite Davidson’s obstacles during the conference, he went on to include his thoughts on receiving his award for Best News Writer. 

“It was genuinely mind-blowing considering it is the conference’s most submitted category and somehow they thought I was a good enough writer to deserve a top five spot”Davidson said.   

Beyond the competition, the conference showcased the importance of teamwork and gave students the opportunity to expose themselves to industry professionals by learning the standards used in everyday journalistic practices.  

SEJC switches locations every year with last year being held at Mississippi State University and the year prior at Troy University. SEJC 2027 will be held at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama.