I’m honored and thrilled to be named a 5-time finalist in the 67th Southern California Journalism Awards, presented by the Los Angeles Press Club. With more than 2,500 entries submitted—breaking all previous records—this year’s awards spotlight the most impactful storytelling across media.
My work has been recognized in four categories—spanning podcasting, TV, travel, and digital journalism—and reflects my continued passion for sharing powerful, meaningful stories of place, purpose, and people making a difference. From TV segments and podcast episodes to lifestyle features, each piece honors the culture, connections, and experiences that move us.
Lifestyle Feature (Podcast)“How Alex Jimenez Transformed Her Passion into a Thriving Travel Community”
On Make Your Own Map, Alex opens up about building Travel Fashion Girl and Women’s Travel Fest into vibrant communities for women travelers. Her entrepreneurial journey and empowering message earned recognition in this lifestyle storytelling category.
Lifestyle Feature (Podcast) & Travel Reporting (Podcast)“Neville McConachie’s Tales of the Giant’s Causeway”
This episode, also from Make Your Own Map, was recorded as part of my Jet Set TV travel special on Ireland—recently honored with a Telly Award. Neville’s storytelling brought the magic and mystery of Northern Ireland’s Giant’s Causeway to life and earned recognition in two categories.
TV/Streaming/Radio FeatureIcon of the Seas – The World’s Largest Cruise Ship
Featured on The Jet Set TV, this segment explored Royal Caribbean’s record-breaking ship. It’s a story of innovation, scale, and the joy of cruising—nominated in a category alongside some of the industry’s best travel broadcasters.
Online Journalist of the Year
I’m especially proud to once again be a finalist for Online Journalist of the Year, honoring the full spectrum of my digital reporting, interviews, and multimedia storytelling. This is my 3rd finalist nomination for Online Journalist of the Year!
I’m incredibly grateful to The Jet Set TV team, my podcast guests, and the editors and collaborators who help bring these stories to life. Thank you for traveling this journey with me—can’t wait to see what’s next!
5x Finalist! Travel, TV & Tales That Made the Judges Take Note
A6. ONLINE JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR, Independent/Freelance
Lisa Niver, Freelance
Nico Lang, Queer News Daily
Lyndsey Parker, Freelance
John Regardie, Freelance
Aitana Vargas, Freelance
B4. TRAVEL REPORTING
Lisa Niver, Make Your Own Map, “Neville McConachie’s Tales of the Giant’s Causeway”
Angela Boisvert, Matt Bass, Tamara Gould, Nathan Masters, Kathy Kasaba, PBS SoCal, “Lost LA: Hiking Trailblazers”
Ruksana Hussain, Fodor’s Travel, “How to Behave When Visiting Sites of Remembrance”
Michele Stueven, LA Weekly, “ON THE HORIZON 100 Years of Filmmaking in Utah”
Susan Valot, KCRW, “‘Just as special as Disneyland,’ backyard trains draw crowds”
Lisa Niver,Make Your Own Map, “How Alex Jimenez Transformed Her Passion into a Thriving Travel Community”
Lisa Niver, Make Your Own Map, “Ireland: Neville’s Stories at Giant’s Causeway”
Jonathan Bastian, Andrea Brody, KCRW, “The Serviceberry’: Robin Wall Kimmerer’s guide to the gift economy”
Caroline Feraday, KCLU Radio, “A master whiskey distiller from Scotland is putting Oxnard on the map”
Juuso Määttänen, Annenbergmedia, “Eli Everfly helps up-and-coming L.A. wrestlers get ahead”
How Alex Jimenez Transformed Her Passion into a Thriving Travel Community
Lisa Niver, The Jet Set TV, “Lisa Niver Onboard Icon of the Seas”
Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, “Hallmark Holiday Stars Won’t Be Ignored by Hollywood Anymore: ‘I Treat Each Production Like a Martin Scorsese Film’”
Mesfin Fekadu, The Hollywood Reporter, “‘Abbott Elementary’ and The Glow Up of Janine Teagues”
James Hibberd, The Hollywood Reporter, “How ‘The Chosen’ Creator Turned the Bible Into Binge TV”
J. Kim Murphy, Variety, “Welcome to ‘Ren Faire’: Lance Oppenheim’s HBO Docuseries Follows a Festival Trapped in a Real-Life Game of Thrones”
The Jet Set TV: Lisa Niver takes us onboard the ICONIC Icon of the Seas
Jet Set Correspondent Lisa Niver set sail on the World’s Largest Cruise ship to give us a look inside!
Thank you The Jet Set TV, Nikki Noya & Bobby Laurie for allowing me to share about Royal Caribbean International’s brand new ship, ICON OF THE SEAS on your travel TV show.
Thank you to the INCREDIBLE & ICONIC production team — Option A Group, Lisa Williams, Sam Harris, Jason Mangini and Patrick Gruss for this amazing segment.
Thank you to TEAM Ketchum –Aaron Kokoruz Jessica Milton Spencer Bullard Amanda Gadaleta Alonso–for another amazing adventure, especially saving me a spot on Crown’s Edge 🙂
Lisa Niver won a 2025 Telly Award for her Travel TV special about Ireland which aired on The Jet Set TV!
https://youtu.be/h1rIvYuti6U
Lisa Niver has won many awards including a TELLY! From 2017 to 2025, in the Southern California Journalism Awards and National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards, she has won nine times and been a finalist forty times for a variety of broadcast, print, podcast and digital categories.
2025 Winner: Silver Telly Award for Celtic Charm travel special!
2025 5x Finalist: Southern California Journalism Awards for Online Journalist of the Year, TV/Streaming/Radio Feature, Lifestyle Feature (Podcast) & Travel Reporting (Podcast)
2024 Winner: National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards Diversity in the Entertainment Industry
2024 4x Finalist: National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards finalist for Online Journalist of the Year, and for three of my podcast interviews with Beth Santos, Wanderful, Carolyn Ray, JourneyWoman, and Samantha Brown, Places to Love.
2024 6x Finalist: Southern California Journalism Awards for Online Journalist of the Year, Podcast Host and for my podcast interviews with Andrew McCarthy, Samantha Brown, Tony Phelan and Christie Tate
2023 Winner: National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards Diversity in Entertainment
2023 3x Finalist: National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards
2023 2x Finalist: Southern California Journalism Awards for Travel Reporting and Podcast Interview
Have you read my memoir, BRAVE-ish? My book has won 10 awards!
2025 International Impact Book Awards—Travel
2024 Gold Medal – Inspirational – North American Book Awards
2024 Gold Bookfest Award – Nonfiction Memoir Travel
2024 Gold Nonfiction Book Award – Nonfiction Authors Association
2024 Literary Titan Gold Book Award – Non-fiction
2024 Silver Bookfest Award – Nonfiction Self-Help Inspiration
2024 Readers’ Favorite Honorable Mention – Non-Fiction – Women’s Genre
2023 Hearten Book Awards First Place Winner – Inspiring & Uplifting Non-Fiction
2023 Zibby Awards Runner-up – Best Book for The Strong Woman2023 Goody Business Book Awards Winner – Memoir/Self-Help
Featured in Conde Nast Traveler Women Who Travel Book Club: 10 New Books We Can’t Wait to Read this FallAs seen in Forbes Best New NonFiction
We need not know where every decision will lead before taking the first step. Sometimes acting upon our deepest convictions is itself the beginning of wisdom.
New opportunities and challenges have always come and gone. But pulpit clergy with their years of training, education and perspective on life, generated from atop the pulpit, are especially well suited for whatever lies ahead.
The Tower of Babel reminds us how easily language can divide us. Our shared history reminds us of what becomes possible when we find ways to understand one another.
What is especially troubling to me is that at many of these protests in France you will find signs reading “Intifada Revolution” and “From the River to the Sea, Palestine Will Be Arab,” along with ubiquitous Palestinian flags, and Hamas flags too.
As an Iranian-born Jewish American, I cherish the right to participate in choosing our leaders. That means researching candidates, understanding the powers of each office and expecting promises to be matched by follow-through.
Zionism, to me, begins with a decision: to stay and refuse to give up – even when election results disappoint us, even when the government pursues a course we fiercely oppose.
When TV was free, somehow there was always something to watch. It was a very Norman Rockwell experience. The whole family would gather in the living room. The dog was asleep on the woven rug.
The fact that he thinks such a once-radical message will be accepted by the American people speaks volumes as to the challenges that the winner of next week’s Israeli elections will face in the court of American public opinion.
Northern Ireland learned at a terrible price that political agreements alone cannot secure lasting peace while armed terrorist groups remain committed to violence.
TV, Podcasts & Passion Projects: I’m a 5-Time Finalist!
Lisa Ellen Niver
Southern California Journalism Awards 2025: 5 Finalist Nominations. 4 Categories. 1 Storytelling Heart.
I’m honored and thrilled to be named a 5-time finalist in the 67th Southern California Journalism Awards, presented by the Los Angeles Press Club. With more than 2,500 entries submitted—breaking all previous records—this year’s awards spotlight the most impactful storytelling across media. My work has been recognized in four categories—spanning podcasting, TV, travel, and digital journalism—and reflects my continued passion for sharing powerful, meaningful stories of place, purpose, and people making a difference. From TV segments and podcast episodes to lifestyle features, each piece honors the culture, connections, and experiences that move us. Lifestyle Feature (Podcast) “How Alex Jimenez Transformed Her Passion into a Thriving Travel Community” On Make Your Own Map, Alex opens up about building Travel Fashion Girl and Women’s Travel Fest into vibrant communities for women travelers. Her entrepreneurial journey and empowering message earned recognition in this lifestyle storytelling category. Lifestyle Feature (Podcast) & Travel Reporting (Podcast) “Neville McConachie’s Tales of the Giant’s Causeway” This episode, also from Make Your Own Map, was recorded as part of my Jet Set TV travel special on Ireland—recently honored with a Telly Award. Neville’s storytelling brought the magic and mystery of Northern Ireland’s Giant’s Causeway to life and earned recognition in two categories. TV/Streaming/Radio Feature Icon of the Seas – The World’s Largest Cruise Ship Featured on The Jet Set TV, this segment explored Royal Caribbean’s record-breaking ship. It’s a story of innovation, scale, and the joy of cruising—nominated in a category alongside some of the industry’s best travel broadcasters. Online Journalist of the Year I’m especially proud to once again be a finalist for Online Journalist of the Year, honoring the full spectrum of my digital reporting, interviews, and multimedia storytelling. This is my 3rd finalist nomination for Online Journalist of the Year! I’m incredibly grateful to The Jet Set TV team, my podcast guests, and the editors and collaborators who help bring these stories to life. Thank you for traveling this journey with me—can’t wait to see what’s next!5x Finalist! Travel, TV & Tales That Made the Judges Take Note
A6. ONLINE JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR, Independent/Freelance
Lisa Niver, Freelance Nico Lang, Queer News Daily Lyndsey Parker, Freelance John Regardie, Freelance Aitana Vargas, FreelanceB4. TRAVEL REPORTING
Lisa Niver, Make Your Own Map, “Neville McConachie’s Tales of the Giant’s Causeway” Angela Boisvert, Matt Bass, Tamara Gould, Nathan Masters, Kathy Kasaba, PBS SoCal, “Lost LA: Hiking Trailblazers” Ruksana Hussain, Fodor’s Travel, “How to Behave When Visiting Sites of Remembrance” Michele Stueven, LA Weekly, “ON THE HORIZON 100 Years of Filmmaking in Utah” Susan Valot, KCRW, “‘Just as special as Disneyland,’ backyard trains draw crowds”K4. LIFESTYLE FEATURE
Lisa Niver, Make Your Own Map, “How Alex Jimenez Transformed Her Passion into a Thriving Travel Community” Lisa Niver, Make Your Own Map, “Ireland: Neville’s Stories at Giant’s Causeway” Jonathan Bastian, Andrea Brody, KCRW, “The Serviceberry’: Robin Wall Kimmerer’s guide to the gift economy” Caroline Feraday, KCLU Radio, “A master whiskey distiller from Scotland is putting Oxnard on the map” Juuso Määttänen, Annenbergmedia, “Eli Everfly helps up-and-coming L.A. wrestlers get ahead”L21. TV/STREAMING/RADIO FEATURE
Lisa Niver, The Jet Set TV, “Lisa Niver Onboard Icon of the Seas” Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, “Hallmark Holiday Stars Won’t Be Ignored by Hollywood Anymore: ‘I Treat Each Production Like a Martin Scorsese Film’” Mesfin Fekadu, The Hollywood Reporter, “‘Abbott Elementary’ and The Glow Up of Janine Teagues” James Hibberd, The Hollywood Reporter, “How ‘The Chosen’ Creator Turned the Bible Into Binge TV” J. Kim Murphy, Variety, “Welcome to ‘Ren Faire’: Lance Oppenheim’s HBO Docuseries Follows a Festival Trapped in a Real-Life Game of Thrones” The Jet Set TV: Lisa Niver takes us onboard the ICONIC Icon of the SeasLisa Niver won a 2025 Telly Award for her Travel TV special about Ireland which aired on The Jet Set TV!
- 2019 Winner: NAEJ Award for KTLA TV segment
- 2019 Finalist: National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards in three categories
- Category H2a. Soft News: Ms. Magazine: Polar Bears Can’t Vote So You Have To
- Category F6a. Soft News Feature – Under 5 Minutes—Film/TV: KTLA TV Oscars Countdown to Gold with Lisa Niver
- Category C1b. Business, Music/Tech/Art: My Wharton Magazine article: Four Female Founders Share Their Origin Stories
- 2019 Finalist: Southern California Journalism Awards for Broadcast Television Lifestyle Segment: Ogden Ski Getaway
- 2018 Finalist for three categories of Southern California Journalism Awards:
- SCIENCE/TECHNOLOGY REPORTING: Smithsonian
- TRAVEL REPORTING: Popsugar Fitness
- PERSONALITY PROFILE: Saturday Evening Post
- 2017 2nd place winner for Southern California Journalism Award Print Column “A journey to freedom over three Passovers” and finalist for Travel Reporting.
More about Lisa Niver: https://lisaniver.com/awards/Have you read my memoir, BRAVE-ish? My book has won 10 awards!
2025 International Impact Book Awards—Travel 2024 Gold Medal – Inspirational – North American Book Awards 2024 Gold Bookfest Award – Nonfiction Memoir Travel 2024 Gold Nonfiction Book Award – Nonfiction Authors Association 2024 Literary Titan Gold Book Award – Non-fiction 2024 Silver Bookfest Award – Nonfiction Self-Help Inspiration 2024 Readers’ Favorite Honorable Mention – Non-Fiction – Women’s Genre 2023 Hearten Book Awards First Place Winner – Inspiring & Uplifting Non-Fiction 2023 Zibby Awards Runner-up – Best Book for The Strong Woman2023 Goody Business Book Awards Winner – Memoir/Self-Help Featured in Conde Nast Traveler Women Who Travel Book Club: 10 New Books We Can’t Wait to Read this Fall As seen in Forbes Best New NonFictionDid you enjoy this article?
You'll love our roundtable.
Editor's Picks
Israel and the Internet Wars – A Professional Social Media Review
The Invisible Student: A Tale of Homelessness at UCLA and USC
What Ever Happened to the LA Times?
Who Are the Jews On Joe Biden’s Cabinet?
You’re Not a Bad Jewish Mom If Your Kid Wants Santa Claus to Come to Your House
No Labels: The Group Fighting for the Political Center
Latest Articles
Albie Selznick’s Unlikely Connection to David Bowie Inspires New Solo Show
Is the New Facebook Film Equal to the Original?
Larry David Is Spot-on in His Satire of the DSA
Remember and Be Grateful
Michael Broukhim’s Journey to a Deeper Judaism
Rosner’s Domain | No Surprise Is Also an Election Surprise
Lech Lecha: The Journey of Growth and the Process of Becoming
We need not know where every decision will lead before taking the first step. Sometimes acting upon our deepest convictions is itself the beginning of wisdom.
From Atop the Pulpit
New opportunities and challenges have always come and gone. But pulpit clergy with their years of training, education and perspective on life, generated from atop the pulpit, are especially well suited for whatever lies ahead.
Abraham’s Lessons in Leadership on the Eve of Israel’s Elections
Anyone who votes, or leads, would be wise to study the story of Abraham and David.
A Different Kind of Tower
The Tower of Babel reminds us how easily language can divide us. Our shared history reminds us of what becomes possible when we find ways to understand one another.
Paris on Fire, America on Edge and the Generation of the Flood
What is especially troubling to me is that at many of these protests in France you will find signs reading “Intifada Revolution” and “From the River to the Sea, Palestine Will Be Arab,” along with ubiquitous Palestinian flags, and Hamas flags too.
Torah Portion: Lech Lecha
In this parsha, we meet the first hire — employee #1 — of Jew, Inc. a new God-created enterprise that will change everything.
“What is Life Worth?”
Determine how much a man’s life – and death – are WORTH? The man who did this for the 9/11 families!
Mayoral Election Preview: Mayor Karen Bass vs. Councilmember Nithya Raman
It is the first time two women are running against each other in the general election for Los Angeles Mayor.
Voting Down Party Lines This Midterm Election Will Hurt Jews
As an Iranian-born Jewish American, I cherish the right to participate in choosing our leaders. That means researching candidates, understanding the powers of each office and expecting promises to be matched by follow-through.
The Missing Years
The question is not only which campus will be safe for our children. It is who our children will be when they arrive.
Silence of the Jews: How Antizionist Mobs on College Campuses Are Assaulting the Freedom of Jewish Students to Disagree with Them
Facing potential mob violence, silence can become a kind of rational, albeit disappointing, response.
A Rose by Any Other Name Is Probably Jewish
Whatever Happens, We’re Here to Stay
Zionism, to me, begins with a decision: to stay and refuse to give up – even when election results disappoint us, even when the government pursues a course we fiercely oppose.
Will Israel’s Critics Repent?
There is a special need for the critics of Israel to repent for their false charges against Israel of starving Gazans.
Who Is Your Provider?
When TV was free, somehow there was always something to watch. It was a very Norman Rockwell experience. The whole family would gather in the living room. The dog was asleep on the woven rug.
Obama’s Turn on Israel
The fact that he thinks such a once-radical message will be accepted by the American people speaks volumes as to the challenges that the winner of next week’s Israeli elections will face in the court of American public opinion.
Obama Got a Doctorate in Belfast and Failed the Local History Lesson
Northern Ireland learned at a terrible price that political agreements alone cannot secure lasting peace while armed terrorist groups remain committed to violence.
El-Sayed’s Muslim Motherhood
A new damning disclosure may finally be too much for even diehard Democrats to overlook.
Melissa B. Greenberg Joins Americans for Ben-Gurion University as New CEO
Greenberg is a veteran nonprofit fundraiser for Jewish organizations with ample experience in higher education as well.
Did You Hear About the Violent Jews Rioting Through France?
Of course not. A scene of angry French Jews burning down government buildings is as likely as a UFO sighting.
More news and opinions than at a Shabbat dinner, right in your inbox.