A total 135 individual nominees from a record field of 640 entries have been chosen for all competitive categories for the 2019 NRMA Kennedy Awards for Excellence in Journalism.
The finalists in those categories – including the $25,000 Kennedy Prize for Journalist of the Year and all pictorial categories – were announced tonight at a function at the Crown Hotel in Elizabeth Street ahead of the August 9 Kennedy Awards.
Finalists include media professionals from interstate and all major metropolitan newspapers and television and radio networks; international journalists and photographers as well as artists and photographers from regional newspapers and radio networks throughout NSW.
The prestigious 2019 Kennedy Prize for Journalist of the Year will be fought out by finalists from Al Jazeera, The Australian and the ABC with the $5,000 Tata Consultancy Services 2019 Young Journalist of the Year dominated by journalists from Sky News Australia, Sydney Morning Herald and Triple J Hack.
Jana Wendt
The $5,000 Chris Watson Award for Outstanding Regional Newspaper Reporting, sponsored by the Judith Neilson Institute for Journalism and Ideas, will be decided between journalists from The Newcastle Herald and The Sound Telegraph Western Australia.
The award also carries a $7,000 grant from the Judith Neilson Institute to allow the winning journalist to undertake a future reporting project or reporting projects on regional issues.
Kennedy Foundation chairman and senior judge Simon Dulhunty said the judges were greatly impressed with the calibre of entries from metropolitan and regional newspaper, radio, television and online journalists.
“In a massive news year, the standard of submissions is really exceptional in every category,” Dulhunty said.
“In some categories it took judges days to finally sort out finalists from big fields, some of which had more than 50 entries.
“From investigative journalism to news breaking, superb feature writing, incredible pictorial entries and wonderful artwork, a class field has emerged to contest the coveted Spirax Trophies produced by Artline.”
Tickets to the August 9 gala night, Sydney’s premier winter event, are on sale now: www.kennedyawards.com.au
Nominees include:
Outstanding Political Reporting (sponsor Sky News Australia)
• Sky News Australia
• Jonathon Lea (10 News First)
• Sharri Markson (Daily Telegraph)
Journalist of the Year
• Greg Bearup (The Australian)
• Anne Connolly (7.30, ABC-TV)
• Peter Charley (Al Jazeera
The Mike Willesee Award Outstanding Nightly Current Affairs (sponsor Nine News)
• Dan Nolan (A Current Affair, Nine)
• John Stewart, Anne Connolly (7.30 ABC-TV)
• Adele Ferguson, Chris Gillett (7.30 ABC-TV)
The Peter Ruehl Award Outstanding Columnist
• Sharri Markson (The Daily Telegraph)
• Chris Kenny (The Australian)
• Jacqueline Maley (Sydney Morning Herald)
See the complete list of 2019 finalists here.
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Top Photo: Grace Tobin, Tara Brown and Dimity Clancy