CHAMPAIGN – Illinois Public Media won four Crystal Mic Awards from the Illinois News Broadcasters Association on Saturday night. Radio and television stations from across Illinois entered the contest. Winners were tiered by whether the station is in a small or large market.
The judges considered material produced between July 1, 2024, and December 31, 2025. IPM is the NPR and PBS member stations licensed to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. It was honored with the following:
- INBA Crystal Mic Award: Best Small Market Radio – Podcasting
- INBA Crystal Mic Award: Best Small Market Radio – Breaking News
- INBA Crystal Mic Award: Best Small Market Radio – Political Report
- INBA Crystal Mic Award: Best Small Market Radio Station
Best Small Market Radio – Podcasting
What We Brought is a limited series exploring the Asian American experience in Central Illinois. Through voices from seven Asian American communities, it shares powerful stories of identity, resilience, and the things carried between countries— be it food, memories, language, or the weight of the past. It was produced by Nidhi Shastri with editing by Kulsoom Khan, Arielle Raveney, and Arjun Thakkar.
Best Small Market Radio – Breaking News
On October 30, 2024, Illinois Public Media journalist Jim Meadows and meteorologist Andrew Pritchard broke into programming on WILL-AM 580 and WILL-FM 90.9 to report on a fast-moving fire on dried-out farmland in eastern Champaign County. The intense flames and massive smoke decreased visibility, closing Interstate 74 for hours.
Best Small Market Radio – Political Report
In the spring of 2025, eleven people competed in the election to fill five open seats on the Champaign Unit 4 Board of Education. Education reporter Emily Hays created an innovative way to explain the candidates’ positions to the public. She asked the members to answer a questionnaire. In addition to on-air reporting, she created an interactive digital story. Users hovered above the board members’ faces as their quotes about particular issues popped up on the screen.
Best Small Market Radio Station
This entry represents a compilation of spot news, features from an in-depth series before the start of the second Trump administration, and excerpts from our new podcast focused on Weather and Climate as well as our statewide talk show that aired on six NPR member stations at the time. We also included a feature produced with the Illinois Student Newsroom. It is a unique partnership with the University of Illinois Urbana Champaign College of Media. At least ten students each semester help us with local reporting, including spots and features. Veteran public radio editor Christine Herman edits them.