Columbia Chronicle Earns Top Mid-Sized Website Honor
The Columbia College Chicago student newspaper placed second for Media Website of the Year among mid-sized colleges, with four staff members winning Pinnacle College Media Awards.
Updated on Nov. 7, 2026 in Higher Education
The Columbia College Chronicle placed second for Media Website of the Year among colleges with enrollments between 3,000 and 9,999 students. Four Chronicle staff members also won two first-place and two second-place Pinnacle College Media Awards.
Why it matters
The recognition highlights the work of student journalists at a Chicago institution covering local and national issues. The awards were presented at a national college media convention, placing the Chronicle among peer publications.
The Chronicle placed second in the mid-sized website category, behind a first-place finisher not named in the source, with Loyola Marymount University and Lehigh University also recognized. The Pinnacle awards covered breaking news story, general news photo, column and short documentary categories.
The players
Columbia College Chicago
A private arts and media college in Chicago's South Loop known for its journalism, film and media programs.
The details
Winners were announced at the College Media Association and Associated Collegiate Press joint convention at the Westin Kansas City at Crown Center. Chronicle work recognized includes a photograph of a protester tackled by law enforcement outside the Broadview ICE facility and a short documentary on Pilsen residents fearing to leave home during immigration enforcement.
Timeline
November 2025: Protest photo taken outside the Broadview ICE facility.
Fall 2025: Pilsen documentary subject feared leaving home during immigration enforcement.
Spring 2026: Columbia ran out of on-campus housing for returning students.
February 2026: Chronicle won a first-place news photography award from the Illinois College Press Association.
November 7, 2026: National awards announced at the Kansas City convention.
Culture Shift
The Chronicle's recognition at the College Media Association's Pinnacle and Apple Awards reflects the continued role of student-run digital newsrooms in covering immigration enforcement and neighborhood life in Chicago. Its first-place Best News Website finish at the 2026 Apple Awards places it among the leading student news sites nationally.
Chicago students weighing journalism programs can see the kind of national-level work a student newsroom produces. The recognition also points to student coverage of neighborhoods such as Pilsen and events like the Broadview protests that readers in the city may follow closely.
The takeaway
Student newsrooms can produce work that competes at the national level, offering readers local reporting from Chicago's neighborhoods and civic events. Following campus publications is one way to track coverage that major outlets may not address.
Further reading
Explore more on Higher Education coverage from across the region.
Source note: This article includes information reported by The Columbia Chronicle.
