Walkley Awards 2017: Full winners list

Fairfax’s Michael Bachelard and Kate Geraghty took out the Gold Walkley

The 62nd Walkley Awards for Excellence in Journalism have been presented in 30 categories.

Around 600 journalists and guests gathered in the Plaza Ballroom of Brisbane’s Convention and Exhibition Centre last night for the awards event hosted by Lisa Wilkinson.

Commenting on the awards judging process, Sky News Australia CEO Angelos Frangopoulos, chair of the Walkley Advisory Board, said, “The last year was a big one for news and the very high quality – and fierce competition – of the entries demonstrated this. The judging process was very challenging and I’d like to thank all the judges who devoted their time and gave careful consideration to each entry.”

​Fairfax Media’s Michael Bachelard and Kate Geraghty took out the Gold Walkley Award​ for their work “Surviving IS: Stories of Mosul”. Bachelard and Geraghty were both speakers at Fairfax’s recent SMH Live: 2017 Year In Review event.

2017 Walkley Awards Category Winners

Print/Text News Report
Nick Hansen, The Daily Telegraph, “EXCLUSIVE – Steal as you earn: tax chief’s son accused of helping mastermind $100m tax fraud”; Sons and Fraudsters”; Family tax benefits: ATO boss tried to help scamming son”

Public Service Journalism
Joanne McCarthy, Newcastle Herald and The Age, Fairfax Media, “Living a Nightmare” I’m living a nightmare; We tried to warn them; Mesh move

Innovation
Rachael Brown, Jeremy Story Carter and Jesse Cox, ABC, “Trace”

Headline, Caption Or Hook
Michael Nolan, The Saturday Paper, “The father, the son and the Hillary ghost”, “Dualling ban grows” “Carpe PM: Turnbull biographer Paddy Manning turns on the PM”

Feature Writing Long (over 4,000 words)
Helen Garner, The Monthly, “Why She Broke: The Woman, her Children and the Lake”

Feature Writing Short (under 4,000 words)
Michael Bachelard, Kate Geraghty and The Age Multimedia Team, The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald, Fairfax Media, “Surviving IS: Stories of Mosul”

Coverage Of Indigenous Affairs
Jane Bardon, 730, ABC TV, AM & PM, ABC Radio and ABC Online, “Demanding Justice: Marshall Wallace, BushMob and Stolen Generation 2”

Indigenous man with only 6 months to live given 15-month prison sentence in NT; Terminally ill man imprisoned for driving offences fights to be released from custody; Dylan Voller’s lawyers want him transferred to bush rehab program; Families convince NT Govt to return Arnhem Land children taken into care

Coverage Of Community Or Regional Affairs
Carrie Fellner, Newcastle Herald, “The sorrow on Cabbage Tree Road”

The sorrow on Cabbage Tree Road; Profiles: the 50 cancer cases of Cabbage Tree Road; Rare cancer strikes twice in the red zone

Cartoon
Cathy Wilcox, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, “Low-cost housing, London”

Sports Journalism
Jamie Pandaram, The Daily Telegraph and The Sunday Telegraph, “Western Force saga”

Western Force set to be axed; Frank exchange between Western Force officials and ARU duo that sparked legal row; Force fate hangs on 15 games

Sport Photography
Scott Barbour, Getty Images,“Split Second”

Radio News And Current Affairs Journalism
Matt Brown, AM, ABC Radio, “The War on Islamic State”

Mosul Front; Mosul Battle; Turkey Terror List

Radio/Audio Feature
Michael Green and the Behind the Wire/Wheeler Centre team, “The Messenger”

Production
The Fairfax Multimedia Team, theage.com.au, smh.com.au, watoday.com.au and canberratimes.com.au, “Surviving IS: Stories from Mosul”

Scoop Of The Year
Annika Smethurst, Herald Sun, “Ley of the Land”

Flat a Ley Buy on Trip; New year’s farce; Ley of the Land

Coverage Of A Major News Event Or Issue
Peter Ryan, AM, PM & The World Today, ABC Radio, ABC News & BBC World Service, “Commonwealth Bank Scandal – accused of 53,000 breaches of anti-money laundering and terror financing laws”

Outstanding Contribution To Journalism
Michael Gordon

News Photography
Justin Brierty, The Cairns Post,“Don’t Shoot”

Business Journalism
Adele Ferguson and Mario Christodoulou, The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald, “The Domino’s Pizza Expose”

Boxed In What life is really like inside pizza giant Domino’s; Domino’s Scandal – Franchisees ‘selling visas’; A small serve Domino’s deal not so fair

Feature/Photographic Essay
Sam Ruttyn, The Sunday Telegraph, “Lion Heart Leo”

Television/Video: Camerawork
Daniel Fallshaw, Guardian Australia, “The Fight”

Television/Video: News Reporting
Sally Sara, ABC News, “Six Days in Somaliland”

 Television/Video Current Affairs Short (less than 20 minutes)
Dimity Clancey, A Current Affair, Nine Network, “Malcolm Naden Confession”

Television/Video Current Affairs Long (more than 20 minutes)
Tara Brown, Grace Tobin and Sean Power, 60 Minutes, Nine Network, “Bitter deal”

Investigative Journalism
Adele Ferguson, Sarah Danckert and Klaus Toft, The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald, Fairfax Media & Four Corners, ABC TV “Bleed Them Dry Until They Die”

Commentary, Analysis, Opinion And Critique
John Silvester, The Age and The Saturday Age, “Naked City”

Tough-guy laws: brave or stupid?; PSOs: Victoria’s dumbest policy?; Knight condemned by his own hand

Walkley Documentary Award
Martin Butler, Liz Jackson, Bentley Dean and Tania Nehme, ABC TV, “A Sense of Self”

Walkley Book Award
Louise Milligan, Cardinal: The rise and fall of George Pell, Melbourne University Press

Nikon-Walkley Press Photographer Of The Year
Kate Geraghty, Fairfax Media

Gold Walkley
Michael Bachelard and Kate Geraghty, The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald, Fairfax Media, “Stories of Mosul”

The 2017 Walkley Awards Board Judges Were:

• Chair: Angelos Frangopoulos, CEO, Australian News Channel

• Deputy chair: Lenore Taylor, editor, Guardian Australia

• Michael Amendolia, photographer

• Michael Beach, editor, The Sunday Times

• Simon Crerar, editor-in-chief, BuzzFeed Australia

• Claire Harvey, deputy editor, The Sunday Telegraph

• Fran Kelly, presenter, ABC Radio National Breakfast

• John Stanley, journalist, 2UE

• Sandra Sully, journalist and senior editor, TEN Eyewitness News

• Lisa Wilkinson, journalist and presenter

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