Below are the details of all finalists in the 55th Walkley Awards for Excellence in Journalism.
Wars, the federal election and crises at sea provided the backdrop for many of the entries that made it through to the finals of 55th Walkley Awards, alongside personal tales of struggle, corruption and tragedy.
Meanwhile, entries in the recently introduced categories of Best Scoop, Best Online Entry and Outstanding Continuous Coverage showcase the degree to which new media have become part of standard journalistic practice.
Finalists in all general news categories were announced simultaneously at events in Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne this evening. Photographic and business finalists were announced at separate events earlier this week.
The standard of journalism across the more than 1000 entries was remarkable, said Media Alliance federal secretary Christopher Warren.
“Looking at the work from this year, journalistic excellence it is to be found more than ever across new media platforms,” said Warren, adding that even on new platforms, “the work of finalists shows that the traditional skills remain at the heart of good journalism”.
Judging for the Walkley Awards is based on a rigorous, two-tiered system, performed by panels of working journalists across all industry sectors. All finalists go forward for judging by the Walkley Advisory Board across 34 categories in print, radio, television, photography and all media.
Winners will be announced at the Walkley Award Gala Ceremony at the Crown Ballroom in Melbourne on Thursday, December 9.
Walkley winners announced on the night will also vie for the top prize for Australian journalistic achievement, the Gold Walkley.
Finalists were divided in to media categories (follow links to entries):
Photographic
Business
Radio, Television & Online
All Media
Walkley Book Award
Print News Report
Proudly sponsored by Media Super
Linton Besser, Sean Nicholls, Nick O’Malley, The Sydney Morning Herald, “Freebies for Labor minister”
Paul McGeough, The Sydney Morning Herald, “Prayers, tear gas and terror”
Paul Toohey and Janet Fife-Yeomans, The Daily Telegraph, “The Azaria Files: Secret Azaria Jury Notes”
Social Equity Journalism
Proudly sponsored by Seven Network
Tom Allard and Jason South, The Sydney Morning Herald and theage.com.au, “Chained to a Life of Madness”
John Blades, 360, ABC Radio National, “The Too-Hard Basket”
The Law Report Team, ABC Radio National
Best Online Journalism
Proudly sponsored by August
Andrew Meares, smh.com.au and nationaltimes.com.au, “Phonearoids@mearesy”
Paola Totaro, Robert Wainwright, Simon Rankin, theage.com.au, “Pheasant Wood - The Lost Diggers of Fromelles”
ABC News Online team, abc.net.au, “Election night coverage”
Commended:
Drew Ambrose, Priscilla Davies, Richard Kendall, Aimee Lipscombe, Bruce Belsham, abc.net.au, “Black Saturday”
Daily Life/Feature Photography
Proudly sponsored by Nikon
Alex Ellinghausen, The Bendigo Advertiser, “Elmore B&S Ball”
Quentin Jones, The Sydney Morning Herald, “Smoke”
Lisa Wiltse, Getty Images, “Potosi”
Commended:
Edwina Pickles, The Sydney Morning Herald, “Backstage at Circus Oz”
Best Three Headings
Warwick McFadyen, The Age
“To the end, a killer’s gilt shows through”
“The Kewell hand of fate”
“Home a loan too much for kids”
Graeme Pringle, The Australian
“Sleepless in seat battle: the longest day of a
non-stop campaigner”
“Breakfast Club visits Ken’s of Keynesington”
“MP same as Sarkozy, amour or less”
Peter Wells, Australian Financial Review
“Hungary gives euro a goulashing”
“Myer culpa”
“End of a Were-a”
Coverage of Indigenous Affairs
Proudly sponsored by SBS
Martin Butler, ABC TV, “Contact”
Liz Jackson, Janine Cohen, Lorna Knowles, Four Corners, ABC TV, “A Dog Act”
Ali Russell and Kirk Docker, Hungry Beast, ABC1, “The Gang of 49”
Coverage of Community and Regional Affairs
Proudly sponsored by Fairfax Media
Andy Drewitt, Diamond Valley Leader, “A trail of lost souls”
Nicole Hasham and Laurel-Lee Roderick, Illawarra Mercury, “Fund collapse ruins families”
Michael McGuire, The Advertiser (Adelaide), “Not for sale”
Commended:
Jodie Ann Duffy and Vincent O’Farrell, Illawarra Mercury, “Drawn Out: A Cartoonist’s Long Battle With Bipolar”
Best Sports Journalism
Andrew Hamilton, The Courier-Mail and Herald Sun, “A punt too many as game rules Fev”
Mike Hurst, The Daily Telegraph, “Tests prove tragic truth of a world champion”
Adrian Proszenko, The Sun-Herald, “Melbourne Storm rorts salary cap”
Commended:
Wendy Page, Australian Story, ABC TV, “Pay it Forward”
Sport Photography
Proudly sponsored by Nikon
Mark Dadswell, Getty Images, “Australian Open and Singapore Youth Olympics”
Michael Dodge, heraldsun.com.au, “Magical moments.
Adam Pretty, Getty Images, “Singapore 2010 Youth Olympics”
Commended:
Craig Golding, Getty Images, “Sydney 2009 World Masters Games”
Radio News and Current Affairs Reporting
Proudly sponsored by ABC
Matthew Brown, AM, ABC Radio, “Marriott Hotel bomber streamed live video to his handlers”
Stephen Long, PM, ABC Radio, “Long term returns not so super”
Sally Sara, PM, ABC Radio, “Abdul’s Story – Afghan Hospital”
Radio Feature, Documentary or Broadcast Special
Proudly sponsored by QUT Creative Industries
Charlotte Glennie, ABC Radio, “Queensland Justice”
Kristina Kukolja, Worldview, SBS Radio, “Echoes of Srebrenica”
Sophie Townsend, 360, ABC Radio National, “Cancer as a Battleground”
Magazine Feature Writing
Proudly sponsored by BHP Billiton
David Marr, Quarterly Essay, “Power trip: The political journey of Kevin Rudd”
Andrew Rule, Good Weekend, “For the love of Niki”
Mandy Sayer, The Monthly, “The wild frontier: the child gangs of Tweed Heads”
Commended:
Amanda Watt, Qweekend and The Courier-Mail, “The Net”
Best Scoop of the Year
Proudly sponsored by The Nine Network
Laurie Oakes, Nine Network, “Labor leaks”
Mark Simkin and Chris Uhlmann, ABC TV, “The Scoop”
Lenore Taylor, The Sydney Morning Herald, “ETS off the agenda until late next term” Commended:
Patricia Karvelas and Dennis Shanahan, The Australian, “Poll the key as mutineers circle Rudd”
Cartoon
Matt Golding, The Sunday Age, “Pollie Pedal”
Mark Knight, Herald Sun, “Moving Forward”
Ron Tandberg, The Age, “Changing Colours”
Commended:
Andrew Dyson, The Age, “Special Edition”
Artwork
Proudly sponsored by Purple Palate
Tony Bela, The Courier-Mail, “Centaur Uncovered”
Tom Jellett, The Weekend Australian, “Icarudd”
Eric Lobbecke, The Australian, “Rudd’s Dangerous Climate Retreat”
Commended:
Andrew Dyson, The Age, “Intensive Care”
Outstanding Continuous Coverage of an Issue or Event
Stephen Fitzpatrick, The Australian, “Sri Lankans threaten to set fire to boat”
John Garnaut, The Sydney Morning Herald, “Revealed: Inside Stern Hu’s Prison Cell”
Sky News team, Sky News, “Federal Election 2010”
Newspaper Feature Writing
Proudly sponsored by Pantera Press
Nikki Barrowclough, The Age, “Julian Assange: Keeper of Secrets”
John Lyons, The Australian, “Running the Gaza blockade”
Pamela Williams, Australian Financial Review, “Kill Kevin”
News Photography
Proudly sponsored by Nikon
Finalists were chosen from each of two sub-categories:
General and Spot News.
General News
Vince Caligiuri, The Age, “Flemington Soaked”
Brett Costello, The Daily Telegraph, “Jessica”
Commended
Phil Hillyard, The Daily Telegraph, “Red Dawn”
Glen McCurtayne, The Sydney Morning Herald, “Rudd Tear”
Spot News
Bob Barker, The Daily Telegraph, “Man vs wild”
Marc McCormack, The Cairns Post, “Saturday bloody Saturday”
Commended
John Morris, Australasian Motorsport News, “Run for your life!”
Business Journalism
Proudly sponsored by JP Morgan
Michael Bachelard, The Sunday Age, “The shadow side of a cardboard king”
Adele Ferguson, The Age, “Something rotten in the state of insolvency practitioners”
Susannah Moran, The Australian, “Tax office misses its share of $2.3bn Myer float”
Commended
Paddy Manning, The Sydney Morning Herald, “The planet-saver that’s still just a pipe dream”
Photographic Essay
Proudly sponsored by Nikon
Phil Hillyard, The Daily Telegraph, “Prime Minister Julia Gillard”
Jack Picone, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, The West Australian, “Battle for BKK”
Jason South, The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald, “Chained to a life of madness”
Commended
Tim Wimborne, Reuters, “Floods in Pakistan”
International Journalism
Sarah Ferguson, Michael Doyle, Karen Michelmore, Four Corners, ABC TV, “Smugglers’ Paradise”
Mary Ann Jolley and Andrew Geoghegan, Foreign Correspondent, ABC TV, “Fly away children”
Paul McGeough, The Sydney Morning Herald and smh.com.au, “Humanitarian flotilla heads to Israel”
Commended
Sally Sara and Wayne McAllister ABC TV News, ABC TV, “Baby Benazir”
Television News and Current Affairs Camera
Bentley Dean, ABC TV, “Contact”
David Martin, Foreign Correspondent, ABC TV, “The Electric Range”
Neale Maude, Four Corners, ABC TV, “A Careful War”
Television News Reporting
Proudly sponsored by Hart Security
Laurie Oakes, Nine Network, “Labor Leaks”
Sally Sara and Wayne McAllister, ABC TV News, ABC TV, “Baby Benazir”
Mark Simkin and Chris Uhlmann, ABC TV, “The Scoop”
Television Current Affairs Reporting (less than 20 minutes)
Proudly sponsored by Media Monitors
Fouad Hady and Ashley Smith, Dateline, SBS, “Iraq’s Deadly Legacy”
Tracy Grimshaw, A Current Affair, Nine Network, “Shelly’s Story”
Tim Palmer, Ges D’Souza, Greg Miskelly, The 7.30 Report, ABC TV, “Abusive priests continue in service of the church”
Commended:
Michael O’Donnell and Michael Munro Sunday Night, Seven Network, “Kokoda: The Lost Battlefield”
Television Current Affairs, Feature, Documentary or Special (more than 20 minutes)
Martin Butler, ABC TV, “Contact”
Quentin McDermott, Janine Cohen, Caro Meldrum- Hanna, Four Corners, ABC TV, “Scientology: The Ex-Files”
Sophie McNeill and Geoff Parish, Dateline, SBS TV, “Questions from Oruzgan”
Investigative Journalism
Proudly sponsored by Bayer
Linton Besser, The Sydney Morning Herald, “The wrong stuff”
Sophie McNeill and Geoff Parish, Dateline, SBS TV, “Questions from Oruzgan”
Mark Willacy, Foreign Correspondent, ABC TV, “The Catch”
Commended:
Richard Baker and Nick McKenzie, Four Corners, ABC TV and The Age, “Dirty Money”
Broadcast and Online Interviewing
Proudly sponsored by Ernst & Young
Lyndal Curtis, ABC Radio, “Abbott has no plans to change IR laws”, “Gillard wants campaign focus on economy”, “Robb calls for investigation into leaks”
Tim Lester and Andrew Meares, smh.com.au, “Bishop’s passports”, “Gillard Challenge”, “Hockey’s Costings”
Kerry O’Brien, The 7:30 Report, ABC TV, “Kevin Rudd interview”, “Abbott 1”, “Abbott 2”
Commended:
Russell Robinson, heraldsun.com.au, “The Life and Crimes of Leigh Robinson”
Commentary, Analysis, Opinion and Critique
Proudly sponsored by ING Direct
Andrew Cornell, Australian Financial Review, “Once Bitten: how Australia’s banks dodged the crisis”
Jane Cowan, abc.net.au, “Brumby’s Frankenstein”
Tony Walker, Australian Financial Review, “Abbott: Why I’m Ready to be PM”
Press Nikon-Walkley Press Photographer of the Year
Proudly sponsored by Nikon
Phil Hillyard, The Daily Telegraph
Simon O’Dwyer, The Sunday Age
Jason South, The Age
Walkley Book Award
Mike Carlton, Cruiser: The Life and Loss of HMAS Perth and Her Crew (Random House)
Paul Cleary, The Men Who Came Out of the Ground (Hachette)
Colleen Egan, Murderer No More: Andrew Mallard and the Epic Fight That Proved His Innocence (Allen & Unwin)
Bridget Griffen-Foley, Changing Stations: The Story of Australian Commercial Radio (UNSW Press)
Chris Hammer, The River: A Journey Through the Murray-Darling Basin (Melbourne University Press)
Ben Hills, Breaking News: The Golden Age of Graham Perkin (Scribe)
Paul Kelly, The March of Patriots: The Struggle for Modern Australia (Melbourne University Press)
Debi Marshall, Lambs to the Slaughter: Inside the Depraved Mind of Child-Killer Derek Ernest Percy (Random House)
Shirley Shackleton, The Circle of Silence: A Personal Testimony Before, During and After Balibo (Murdoch Books)
The 55th Walkley Awards Judges
Best Scoop of the Year
Mark Forbes, deputy editor, The Sunday Age
Margot O’Neill, senior journalist, Lateline, ABC TV
David Penberthy, editor, The Punch
Outstanding Continuous Coverage
of an Issue or Event
Jonathan Green, editor, The Drum, ABC Online
Nic Hopkins, online editor, The Australian
Tim Lester, national bureau chief, The Sydney Morning
Herald and The Age
Literary
Joel Becker, CEO, Australian Book Sellers Association
Deborah Cameron, presenter, ABC Radio 702
Rodney Cavalier, chairman, Sydney Cricket Ground Trust
Paul Daley, journalist and author
Malcolm Farr, national political editor, The Daily Telegraph
Kate Legge, author and journalist, The Australian
Alice Pung, author and editor
Hedley Thomas, journalist, The Australian
Peter van Onselen, contributing editor, The Australian; political presenter, Sky News; associate professor of politics, Edith Cowan University
Walkley Advisory Board Judging Panel
Quentin Dempster, NSW presenter, Stateline,
ABC TV (chair)
Gay Alcorn, editor, The Sunday Age
Mike Carlton, columnist, The Sydney Morning Herald
Helen Dalley, journalist, Sky Business News
John Donegan, freelance photographer
Malcolm Farr, national political editor, The Daily Telegraph
Peter Meakin, director of news and public affairs,
Seven Network
Jeni O’Dowd, group editorial marketing manager,
News Ltd
Malcolm Schmidtke, managing editor, Herald Sun
Fenella Souter, senior features writer, Good Weekend
