J-school projects again among finalists in SXSW Interactive Awards

For the second consecutive year, two UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media projects have been selected as finalists in the student category of the SXSW Interactive Awards. “Coal: A Love Story” and the 2011 Carolina Photojournalism Workshop’s “Finding the Uwharries” are each one of five projects in the category "devoted exclusively to the student designers who are refreshing this industry with new talent and new ideas."

“Coal: A Love Story” is an interactive multimedia website that explores modern culture’s complicated relationship with coal. The immersive online experience challenges audiences to engage with energy issues in a personalized way. It is the latest iteration of the school’s Powering a Nation project, part of the experimental News21 project funded by the Carnegie-Knight Initiative on the Future of Journalism Education. The initiative fosters in-depth, interactive and innovative journalism at journalism schools across the country.

“Finding the Uwharries” marks the eighth consecutive summer that multimedia students from the school have traveled to a North Carolina location to document the area. In 2011, students – with the help of professionals serving as coaches – told the stories of people living in Badin, N.C., in the Uwharries Mountains of south central North Carolina.

The winners will be announced at the 15th Annual SXSW Interactive Awards Ceremony in Austin on March 13.