The Occidental Editor-in-Chief Nora Youngelson (senior) said, “I am incredibly proud of the team of talented journalists who work on this paper, and it is an honor to receive recognition for our work.”
James Miller (senior) and Emma Cho ’25 won first place for Best Feature Story for their Feb. 5, 2025 article, “‘Did we just lose everything we’ve invested all our lives into’: Occidental community grapples with Eaton Fire.” Miller and Cho interviewed faculty, staff and a student who were affected by the Jan. 7, 2025 fires.
Jacob Whitney ’25 won second place for Best Breaking News for his May 8, 2025 article, “Oxy SJP protest and confrontation with security at Stritikus’s inauguration expose strong divides across campus communities.” Whitney’s coverage of the event also won an honorable mention in the national Associated Collegiate Press contest October 2025.
Francine Ghazarian (junior) won third place for Best Non-Breaking News Story for her Nov. 12, 2025 article, “Occidental ranked 151st out of 257 colleges for free speech climate.”
Anthony Cordova (first year) won Third Place for Best Sports Photograph for his Nov. 8, 2025 photo of celebrating Occidental soccer teammates in the article, “Men’s soccer wins SCIAC, women’s team makes playoffs for first time in four years.”
“The CCM Awards are a reflection of the time and energy that our team dedicates to the newsroom every single week. Now more than ever, student journalism is crucial not only to our college campus but to all the communities that we are taking part in,” Youngelson said.
To contact The Occidental staff, email theoccidental@oxy.edu.
