Jay Korff-The top story, “HOV Dummy,” was an extremely interesting and creative story about a remarkably self-deprecating character. It was clear to us that the winner worked tirelessly to pull together a highly entertaining piece. The rest of the stories serve as prime examples of beautifully crafted visual narratives cobbled together in just a day.

Joel Eagle-The judges were divided when it came to picking the top story. We narrowed a very large category down to six stories. I felt that the eventual top two winners stood out from the rest. “I Want To Live With This” was terrific, smart, well shot and well told.

Regina McCombs-I would have loved to be able to reward stories that were more truly general assignment, but only a half dozen of those showed creativity and a lot of effort. There were a lot of stories this year on memorial services and immigration rallies, but few rose to the level of being memorable. In the end, it came down to the same things we used to judge other categories: strong photography and sound, photographer hustle and good storytelling.

Mike Humphries-Comments to come.

Stephanie Ottjepka-Comments to come.

Erica Simpson-I liked the approach the winner took with “HOV Dummy”. Stepping back and including the media frenzy was a fun and interesting way to tell the story.

Mark Morache-A plea from a judge: Please, don't waste your time with extraneous sound. If it doesn't propel the story forward, it's just noise. Please remember that someone has to watch the story you put together. It must make sense, and not confuse. It must not nauseate with wild movements, obscure shots or meaningless flash edits. Take time to stop, look, listen and feel what's happening around you. You'll find the center of the story. And then you'll be able to share it with us. “HOV Dummy” was so interesting and was covered so well. It told a complete story, and told it well. “I Want To Live With This” was about a group of teenagers getting tattooed to honor their friend who had been brutally murdered. It was a simple natural sound story, but how powerful to just hear them talk. Kudos to the photographer and to the station that had the good sense to run with such a powerful treatment as this.

Merry Murray-Comments to come.

Ram Guzman-Comments to come.