TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - For the third straight year, Dateline Alabama, the student Web magazine of the College of Communication and Information Sciences at The University of Alabama, led all media in Region 3 of the Society of Professional Journalists Mark of Excellence competition.

The awards were presented April 9 in Charleston, S.C. Regional winners advance to national competition to be announced in September in Las Vegas. Dateline Alabama has won three national Mark of Excellence awards over the past two years. Region 3 includes all colleges and universities in Alabama, Georgia, Florida and South Carolina.

Dateline Alabama received 17 finalist awards in the 2004 competition. Second place went to the Independent Florida Alligator at the University of Florida with 10 awards. Third was the University of Georgia’s Red and Black with 7.

Dateline Alabama In-Print, the college’s feature magazine, won two awards to lead the magazine competition.

The Crimson White joined The Red and Black, the University of South Florida’s Oracle, and the Independent Florida Alligator for Best All-Around Daily Student Newspaper. The Crimson White took one other award, for spot news reporting.

UF won the regional sweepstakes award this year, edging out Alabama, 25-24, breaking UA’s two-year string as sweepstakes winner.

“I am very proud of the showing by UA students in this prestigious competition,” said Ed Mullins, professor of journalism and adviser of Dateline Alabama and Dateline Alabama In-Print. “The credit goes to the students themselves and to the faculty whose instruction and advising make them competitive with the nation’s best journalism programs.”

Following is a list of UA awards and award winners in the competition:

• Samantha Hall of Tuscaloosa, The Crimson White, Spot News Reporting
• Crimson White staff, Best Student Daily Newspaper, editor Lauren Davidson of Madison
• Emily Kornegay of Prattville, Dateline Alabama In-Print, Nonfiction Article
• Dateline Alabama In-Print, Best Student Magazine Published Once a Year, editor Kathleen Penton of Talladega
• Bobby Puppione of Castro Valley, Calif., Alabama Public Radio, In-Depth Reporting and Sports Reporting
• Clayton Zook of Tuscaloosa, WVUA 7, TV Sports Photography
• Amanda Pair of Tuscaloosa, Dateline Alabama, Online Spot News Reporting
• Renee Ballard of Tuscaloosa, Dateline Alabama, Online General News Reporting, Dateline Alabama, Online Feature Reporting and Dateline Alabama, Online Sports Reporting
• Karen Perkins of Tuscaloosa, Dateline Alabama, Online General News Reporting
• Heather Henderson of Spanish Fort, Dateline Alabama, Online General News Reporting
• Patrick Beeson of Tuscaloosa, Dateline Alabama, Online Feature Reporting, editor for Online In-Depth Reporting, Best Online Independent Student Publication and Online Spot News Reporting
• Katie Hines of Tuscaloosa, Dateline Alabama, Online Feature Reporting
• Jennifer Thompson of Decatur, Dateline Alabama, Online In-Depth Reporting and Online Sports Reporting
• Ty West of Florence, Raven Perkins of Montgomery, David Butler of Birmingham and Adam Giannini of Cadiz, KY, Dateline Alabama, Online Sports Reporting
• Ty West of Florence, Dateline Alabama, Online Opinion and Commentary
• Lance Orr of Tuscaloosa, Dateline Alabama, Online Opinion and Commentary