From Rolling Stone · Rolling Stone · · 1m 30s
Three college journalists win Rolling Stone's 2026 awards
A Penn film critic, a Duke reporter chasing Stephen Miller's past, and a Texas A&M writer at a record baseball night.
In brief
A Penn film critic, a Duke reporter chasing Stephen Miller's past, and a Texas A&M writer at a record baseball night. Rolling Stone's college awards went to three students whose reporting ranged from prestige TV criticism to a 100,000-person baseball game, and all three stories are live on the site now. Originally…
Born in a dorm room
Rolling Stone started in 1967 as a student-era project, and the College Journalism Awards are how it keeps paying attention to young writers.
“Ever since Rolling Stone was founded in a college dorm room in 1967, we've been an outlet for young voices and aspiring journalists.”
The 2026 winners
Henry Metz of Penn, Seyun Park of Duke, and Ian Curtis of Texas A&M took the three prizes. Their stories are published on RollingStone.com.
“These students impressed us with their discerning angles, diligent research, and captivating storytelling.”
What prestige TV lost
Metz argued in 34th Street Magazine that The Bear borrows Sopranos-era techniques to blow small kitchen conflicts up to melodrama, without the stakes growing.
“'Prestige' used to mean escalation and consequence, but now it allows intensity without expansion.”
Stephen Miller, the Duke years
Park won Feature Writing by interviewing Duke alumni, including former colleagues at The Chronicle, about the White House adviser back when he was a PoliSci student.
“'He Likes the Attention': Stephen Miller, Through the Memories of His Duke Classmates”
100,000 people, one ballpark
Curtis won Entertainment Reporting from the field at Kyle Field, where a Savannah Bananas exhibition drew a record crowd. He worked attendees, players, and executives.
“'A Two-Hour Escape': Inside Savannah Bananas' Record-Breaking Night at Kyle Field”
Already working reporters
Metz is a film/TV editor and RealArts@Penn intern. Park is university news editor at The Duke Chronicle. Curtis is a former editor-in-chief at The Battalion and a New York Times Corps mentee.
At a glance
Rolling Stone's college awards went to three students whose reporting ranged from prestige TV criticism to a 100,000-person baseball game, and all three stories are live on the site now.
