(February 18, 2008 – Lawrence, KS) Two University of Kansas School of Journalism students finished in the top ten in the nation in the Sports Writing category of the prestigious William Randolph Hearst Foundation’s Journalism Awards Program, often called the College Pulitzers.

The wins put KU in first place in the Intercollegiate Writing Competition, with the highest accumulated school points from the first four writing competitions. Two competitions remain for this year.

Thor Nystrom, a senior from Baxter, Minn., placed third and won a $1,000 scholarship for his article on ticket scalping. Brian Lewis-Jones, a senior from Lenexa, Kan., placed seventh and won a $500 scholarship for his feature article on cage fighting.

“We are very proud of our students’ continued successes in the Hearst writing competition,” said Ann Brill, dean of the School of Journalism. “Their accomplishments are a reflection of the quality of students and teachers at KU, and to our commitment to excellence in storytelling.”

The final winners will be named in April, following the last writing competition of this academic year. KU finished first in 2007 in the Intercollegiate Writing Competition of the Hearst Awards.

The Hearst Journalism Awards Program, conducted under the auspices of accredited schools of the Association of Schools of Journalism and Mass Communication, is fully funded and administered by the W. R. Hearst Foundation. The program consists of six monthly writing, three photojournalism, four broadcast news competitions and one multimedia competition, with championship finals in all divisions except multimedia. The program awards more than $500,000 in scholarships, grants and stipends annually.

There were 83 students from 49 schools nationwide who participated in the sports writing competition. Currently, more than 100 undergraduate accredited schools of journalism in the United States are eligible to participate in the program. For samples of winning work, check the monthly winners section of the Journalism Awards Web site at www.hearstawards.org.

Publisher William Randolph Hearst established the William Randolph Hearst Foundation and The Hearst Foundation, Inc. in the 1940s, before his death in 1951. Since then, the foundations have awarded more than $500 million in grants and programs.

For more information about the William Randolph Hearst Foundation, contact Jan Watten, program director, at jwatten@hearstfdn.org, or visit www.hearstawards.org.

Nystrom and Lewis-Jones' articles can be viewed on The University Daily Kansan's Web site at www.kansan.com.

**Contact: Jennifer Kinnard, Communications Coordinator for the University of Kansas William Allen White School of Journalism and Mass Communications, (785) 864-7644 or jkinnard@ku.edu.