The Rural Press Club of Victoria Rural and Regional Journalism and Photography Awards, held on Friday, October 27, were again a successful outing for The News and the wider McPherson Media Group team.
MMG journalists and photographers, both past and present, were recognised for their efforts at the 2023 edition of the awards ceremony, held at the Geelong Library and Heritage Centre.
The News was nominated as a finalist in the Media Outlet of the Year and received a commended award for the second year in a row.
The coverage of the October 2022 flood emergency, including various live blogs which reached more than 1 million collective views in the space of a week, underpinned The News’ submission.
Various pleas from local emergency services to attempt to raise awareness for the region’s horrific recent road tolls, coverage of Murchison-Toolamba Football Netball Club’s facilities plight and stories and features surrounding Garang Kuol’s meteoric rise to the Socceroos ranks for the FIFA World Cup were other cornerstones of The News’ submission.
“I am incredibly proud of the work the team at The News does day in and day out, but especially in times of crisis like the October 2022 floods across our region,” News editor Tyler Maher said.
“Recognition in this prestigious award category is a great opportunity to pause and reflect on our achievements, but also a reminder to strive to continue to reach the high bar of coverage it represents into the future.”
First-year cadet Caleb Francis was also commended in the category of Young Journalist of the Year, while former deputy editor Max Stainkamph claimed victory in the Best Feature Story-Print category for the second year in a row.
Stainkamph’s ‘The day everything changed: Shepp’s last COVID-free day’ was a blow-by-blow look back at how coronavirus took hold in Greater Shepparton, a year on from when it all happened.
Dairy News Australia — among the MMG cohort of publications — journalist Jeanette Severs snared a pair of commended awards for Best Agribusiness Story and Best Sports Photograph.