UNL student Jenna Jaynes placed first in the Hearst Broadcast Television News Competition.

Jaynes is one of five finalists from 79 entries nationally who qualified for the television news semifinal competition in February of the Hearst Journalism Awards Program.

The UNL College of Journalism and Mass Communications is tied for fourth place in the Intercollegiate Broadcast News Competition. The winners will be named in April.

“Jenna’s feature stories on the first man to become a member of UNL’s color guard team and academic cheating were superb,” said Barney McCoy, associate professor of broadcasting. “Our thanks to the Hearst Awards for recognizing her work. We couldn’t be prouder of Jenna’s accomplishments as a broadcast major.”

Jaynes’ winning entries can be viewed on the NewsNetNebraska website at http://go.unl.edu/jennajaynes.

Jaynes, of Bartlett, Ill., has interned at WBBM-TV (CBS Chicago), WRMN 1410 and Batavia Access Television and has worked as an assistant producer on a Native Daughters documentary at the college.

The 2013-2014 broadcast news competitions are held in 105 member colleges and universities of the Association of Schools of Journalism and Mass Communication with accredited undergraduate journalism programs. The Broadcast News Competition was added in 1988 to the Hearst Foundation’s Journalism Awards Program that includes writing, photojournalism, and multimedia competitions and offers awards totaling up to $500,000 in scholarships, matching grants and stipends.