Rockville Channel 11 Wins 14th Consecutive National Award for Excellence

[Howard Hartman]

For Immediate Release October 1, 2008

Rockville Channel 11 Wins 14th
Consecutive National Award for Excellence

Election Coverage and Public Safety Program Recognized

Rockville, Md., Oct. 1, 2008 - Rockville Channel 11 was honored with two awards by the National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors (NATOA) at its annual conference in Atlanta last week. The awards recognized the station's Election 2007 coverage and its public safety program "Every 15 Minutes."

This was the 14th consecutive year that Rockville Channel 11 has received national recognition for its programming, despite competing in certain categories against the cable channels of the nation's largest cities. The annual NATOA Government Programming Awards competition recognizes excellence in television, multimedia and electronic programming developed by municipal agencies. Programs are judged on content and creative elements, technical and engineering production elements and overall quality.

"These awards are a great honor for our channel and staff. We are grateful for the support and assistance we have received from other City departments, management and the Mayor and Council," said Doug Breisch, Rockville's television and telecommunications manager. "We are especially pleased that our election coverage was judged to be on the same level as some of the largest municipalities in the country. I believe the programs that were recognized are representative of the generally consistent high quality and professionalism of all programs produced by the staff of Rockville Channel 11."

In the election coverage category, Rockville won second place, just behind Seattle and ahead of Denver and San Francisco. Rockville's election coverage included public service announcements, live and recorded candidate debates and forums, candidate segments and a live election night program with results, interviews and background segments.

The "Every 15 Minutes" program was developed as a key component of the City's annual campaign to reduce teen drinking and driving. It won second place in the public safety category behind Irvine, Calif., and Arvada, Colo.

Rockville Channel 11 is also a finalist in three categories of the annual City-County Communications and Marketing's "Savvy" competition for excellence in government communications. Award winners will be announced in October.

Residents can view Rockville Channel 11 programming on basic cable or on the Internet:

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