Tanzina Vega (Class of ‘07), a web producer for NYTimes.com, captured a first-place National Press Photographers Association award, winning in the Feature Audio Slideshow category.

“Where Unmentionables Come With a Story,” chronicled the struggles of the dwindling number of Manhattan’s Lower East Side shops selling clothing, lingerie, shoes, and jewelry at bargain prices.

Vega reported and narrated the audio slideshow and served as a producer. A member of the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism’s pioneering first class, Vega was among three top graduates honored last year at the J-School’s inaugural Excellence in Journalism Awards gala, an event headlined by noted broadcast journalist Tom Brokaw.

Vega has been on staff for nearly a year at NYTimes.com, which won a prestigious 2008 Peabody Award on April 1.