West Liberty University students have been given an opportunity to put their investigative reporting skills to the test.

Retired communications professor John Matviko is offering a $1,000 cash prize for an outstanding and deserving piece of investigative journalism.

“While this is an award for outstanding investigative journalism, it is not restricted to just journalism students.  Any student who wants to participate is strongly encouraged to do so,” said Tammie Beagle, WLU journalism professor.

Investigative journalism involves research well beyond simple reporting. Many investigative journalism pieces can take months or even years to complete.

Matviko is looking for a piece of investigative journalism that is original, focused on a single topic, in-depth (beyond the mere reporting of news), and it has to demonstrate critical thinking skills.

Students are free to choose any topic they wish as long as it is relevant to WLU. The submitted articles will be compared by topic choice and their importance to the West Liberty community, originality, depth, documentation, writing quality, and the impact it has on West Liberty University.

The deadline for submission is April 17, 2015. Articles should be sent directly to Matviko at jmatviko@westliberty.edu.

Matviko also would like for the submitted pieces to have been published in The Trumpet and would like students to send him the published version. If it is not published in The Trumpet, interested students can still enter by sending him a word document along with an explanation as to why it was not published.

To have your articles published in the Trumpet, send them to the editor, Jessica Broverman, at jebroverman@hotmail.com. Students are also encouraged to attend the weekly Trumpet meetings held every Wednesday at noon in CU 22, which is located on the top floor of the student union.

Interested students can also email Beagle at tbeagle@westliberty.edu.

“John Matviko was one of my professors while I was an undergraduate here, so I know how high his standards are.  I’m not at all surprised that he continues caring about the University, its students, and solid reporting techniques.  This award demonstrates that, despite his retirement, he remains committed to our students and their goals,” said Beagle.

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