The Online News Association just announced its inaugural MJ Bear Fellows. The brand-new fellowship is granted to three up-and-coming journalists — all under the age of 30 — whose work represent the best in new media. (We covered the application process back in April.)

While the three winners will be receiving most of the spotlight, I wanted to call attention to the fact that ONA, an organization dedicated to journalism innovation online, gave honorable mention to three other applicants. All of these young journalists, as ONA Executive Director Jane McDonnell said, are “not just growing within the industry, they’re leading the way.”

The 2011 fellows are:

• Lucas Timmons, 27, a data journalist and web producer for The Edmonton Journal in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada;
• Laura Amico, 29, founder and editor of Homicide Watch D.C. The site, based in the country’s capitol, covers every homicide in D.C. and includes news, obituaries, profiles, and more;
• Lam Thuy Vo, 26, a multimedia reporter for The Wall Street Journal in Hong Kong who developed Dissecting China’s Housing Market.

Honorable mention was awarded to:

• Denise Cheng, 26, a citizen journalism coordinator for The Rapidian, based in Grand Rapids, Mich.;
• Michael Morisy, 27, an editorial director at TechTarget and web producer for the New England Center for Investigative Reporting at Boston University;
• Alex Wood, 25, a freelance journalist based in London, UK, who has contributed to the BBC.

Congratulations to everyone above. The three fellows will receive official mentorship from digital news leaders and a free trip to ONA’s annual conference. But I wouldn’t be surprised to also see Cheng, Morisy, and Wood making waves in the industry. They have already caught the eye of the selection committee at ONA and I’m sure more great projects will follow.

Who were you most impressed with?