October 28, 2024 -- Santa Monica College's (SMC) student-run media outlet The Corsair took home 27 regional awards this month, with photojournalist Danilo Perez finishing first in three major categories.
The Journalism Association of Community Colleges (JACC) also gave The Corsair staff meritorious awards for Newspaper General Excellence, Online General Excellence and Enterprise News Story/Series.
The awards were announced at the JACC SoCal Conference Saturday, October 19, at Cal State University-Northridge.
“As always. the Corsair staff continues to hold a highly professional approach to news and photo reportage,” said photojournalism instructor Gerard Burkhart. “I stand in awe at the things they accomplish.”
Perez -- who also took home three second-place prizes including a team prize -- commutes two hours by train from Azusa, college officials said. He fell in love with photography when his older brother gave him a hand-me-down camera in middle school.
Shirtless man dancing at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, Calif. on Saturday, February 16, 2023.
(Photo Credit: Danilo Perez | The Corsair)
Starting out with street photography in high school, Perez branched out to news, entertainment and sports photography. He won first place for a news photo, a team photo essay and his solo online photo story covering a professional bullriding event.
“You really just get to capture the moment,” said Perez, who hopes to work for the Associated Press or Reuters.
Also this month, the Society of Professional Journalists Los Angeles (SPJ/LA) honored Cebelihle Hlatshwayo, who was The Corsair's editor-in-chief during the Spring 2024 semester, in its emerging/outstanding students category.
Hlatshwayo, an international student from South Africa, graduated this Spring and transferred to Howard University in Washington, D.C.
At SPJ/LA’s 48th Distinguished Journalist Awards Banquet October 23, Hlatshwayo had a chance to speak with keynote speaker Bill Whitaker, the 60 Minutes correspondent who conducted a hard-hitting interview with Vice President Kamala Harris earlier this month.
Whitaker covered the historic inauguration of anti-apartheid activist
Nelson Mandela’s as South Africa's first president in 1994.
Other SMC students who won top prizes in the JACC competition were Phoebe Huss, who won first place for copy editing; Taylor Parise, who won second place for critical review and Caylo Seals who won second place for photo Story/Essay.
The Corsair is one of six community college newspaper finalists nationwide for the highest award from the Associated Collegiate Press (ACP), the Pacemaker. Winners will be announced on November 2.