Last night at the annual Radio Television Digital News Association's (RTDNA) Edward R. Murrow Awards dinner in New York City, NBC News President Steve Capus accepted the "Overall Excellence" award on behalf of the network. This marks the fourth year in a row that NBC News has been the recipient of the "Overall Excellence" award.
"This kind of recognition is not one that we at NBC News take for granted as nothing in this business should be taken for granted," said Capus in his acceptance speech. "Rather, this kind of success is what we strive for each and every day, from the moment we start planning for a story until our audience is watching it on-air. Our viewers have high expectations, and NBC News has been and always will be dedicated to meeting and hopefully exceeding those expectations." Capus also took a moment to reflect on the U.S. presidential election, and urged the campaigns to stop using news material in their political advertisements, explaining that it misrepresents journalists and takes their reporting out of context for the sake of driving a different message.
Included in the entry for "Overall Excellence" was NBC News' coverage of the Tucson, Arizona shooting in January of 2011 with Lester Holt live in Tucson, the Egyptian revolution with Richard Engel live from Cairo, Ann Curry's reporting on the tsunami in Japan, the network's coverage of the ten-year anniversary of 9/11, an "Education Nation" report from Rehema Ellis, Bob Costas' exclusive interview with Jerry Sandusky on Rock Center, reporting on the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" from Jim Maceda in Afghanistan, BrIan Williams with Lester Holt and Ron Mott reporting on the tornado outbreak across the southeast, the network's coverage of the Royal Wedding, and more. To watch the winning entry for the "Overall Excellence" award, click here.NBC Nightly News won the Video Newscast category for its broadcast covering the destructive tornadoes that ripped across seven states in late April of 2011. Anchor and Managing Editor BrIan Williams reported live from Tuscaloosa, AL. TODAY was honored in the Writing category for American Story with Bob Dotson. This is the sixth time TODAY has won this award.
