Ball State Public Media Honored with National Awards for Local Journalism

Topics: Awards, Ball State PBS, College of Communication Information and Media

June 26, 2026

Ball State Public Media has earned two national awards from the Public Media Journalists Association (PMJA) in recognition of Indiana Public Radio's local journalism and student reporting.

Indiana Public Radio (IPR), a service of Ball State University, received two second-place honors in PMJA's annual awards competition, which recognizes outstanding work from public media newsrooms across the country.

The honors come at a time when local journalism remains essential to helping communities stay informed, connected, and engaged. Through Indiana Public Radio, Ball State Public Media provides trusted reporting on issues, events, and decisions affecting communities across East Central Indiana.

IPR was honored in the Newscast category for a local newscast produced and anchored by Stephanie Wiechmann, IPR's managing editor and local host of All Things Considered. Ms. Wiechmann has reported and hosted for IPR for 18 years.

Ball State student journalist Daniel Huber was recognized in the Student Spot News category for his reporting on the funeral rites for Delaware County Sheriff's Department Corporal Blake Reynolds, who was killed in 2025 while responding to a crash on Interstate 69.

Mr. Huber is a fellow in the Ball State Public Media Public Media Accelerator program, known as PMX. He was hired as an incoming freshman and has spent three years reporting for IPR. He will return to the newsroom for his senior year. Mr. Huber is from Fishers, Ind., and is majoring in communication and media studies.

"Through his time at Ball State Public Media, Daniel's skills and confidence have grown tremendously. He sounds like a professional reporter," Ms. Wiechmann said. "We are so excited that our listeners will hear more of his stories during his senior year."

PMJA includes more than 130 local public radio newsrooms across the country. Its annual awards are judged by public media professionals and recognize excellence in reporting, newscasts, features, interviews, student journalism, and other categories.

"These awards reflect the essential role Ball State Public Media plays in serving our region with trusted local journalism while preparing the next generation of reporters," said Angie Grimes, interim general manager and director of audience development for Ball State Public Media. "Stephanie and Daniel's work demonstrates how local reporting helps communities better understand the people, places, and issues shaping their daily lives."

Ball State Public Media includes Indiana Public Radio and Ball State PBS, which are licensed to Ball State University and serve East Central Indiana and Western Ohio. Together, they provide educational content, public safety communications during natural disasters, professional development and resources for teachers, music and cultural programming, local news, and other community-focused programming.

Ball State Public Media is housed in Ball State's College of Communication, Information, and Media and supports the University's commitment to community engagement while providing immersive learning opportunities for students. Through IPR, students gain hands-on experience in reporting, audio production, interviewing, editing, and ethical decision-making in a professional public media newsroom.

For more information about Ball State Public Media and its programming, visit ballstatepbs.org and indianapublicradio.org.