KHOU 11 makes TV history with Emmy win

I think I'm going to have to make a blog category called 'KHOU 11 awards.' Every time I turn about, KHOU is winning something. Now the station is telling me it made television history. How?

For the second year in a row, KHOU won the Outstanding Regional News Story – Investigative Reporting award at the National News and Documentary Emmy ceremony in New York City. This is the first time a local station has received this award consecutively. Last year, KHOU was awarded the prize in the same category for their investigative piece Hiding Homicide. Here is more from the station:

This year’s winning entry is Soldiers at Risk: The Iraq Water Investigation, which originally aired in May 2009. Reporter Jeremy Rogalski, Executive Producer for Investigative David Raziq and Photojournalist Keith Tomshe uncovered how U.S. soldiers fighting in Iraq and often facing 130 degree heat were given an inadequate supply of drinking water. The investigation discovered that some soldiers were rationed to a half-gallon of water a day for as long as one year. Military guidelines, however, recommend seven times that amount.

Due to these conditions, KHOU’s investigative team found that some soldiers were forced to steal water from civilian facilities in order to survive. Many developed severe medical problems that continue to plague them in civilian life.

Soldiers at Risk has also won a National Headliner Award and a Texas Associated Press Broadcasters Award.

“Texas and Houston are well represented in the U.S. Army and Marine Corps,” said Susan McEldoon, KHOU President and General Manager. “We stand behind them and are proud to receive national recognition for a story that exposed a preventable, yet potentially life-threatening obstacle to their service.”

“Just as soldiers answer a call to duty, our investigative team answers a call to uncover injustice and, in this case, danger that shouldn’t exist,” said Keith Connors, KHOU Executive News Director. “There is a profound amount of care that goes into this type of investigative reporting and we are humbled to once again be recognized by the Television Academy with this prestigious award.”

Now remember this is the national Emmy awards, not the Texas version. But don't think the station doesn't have its eyes on some Lone Star Emmy awards. KHOU is in the running for 56 nominations. The station says that is more than any other station in the state of Texas.

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Watch Emmy-award winning 'Soldiers at Risk: The Iraq Water Investigation' CONTACT: Leave me a Houston or Texas media news tip | COMMENT: Click to leave your thoughts on this post here