YOUR 2021 WINNERS
A powerful investigation into prison deaths in Salford, Greater Manchester, a tenacious campaign to improve road safety in Ayr, south west Scotland and a compassionate interview with the mother of Harry Dunn have all been recognised at the IRN Awards 2021 in association with Sky News.
The event, which recognises excellence in commercial radio news and sport, was live streamed for the second consecutive year.
It was hosted by Sky News presenter Jayne Secker who was joined by several Sky correspondents to announce the winners.
Global’s Newsroom North West won the ‘Best News Special or Feature’ award for ‘Behind The Walls of Forest Bank,’ an investigation into the high number of deaths at the prison in Salford. Judges said it was ‘an incredibly powerful piece of journalism and storytelling which truly gave the voiceless a voice.’
The ability of commercial radio to make a difference was highlighted as West FM’s ‘Joan’s Legacy’ won the ‘Campaigning Journalism Award’ for its efforts in getting average speed cameras installed on a road in Ayr where a woman was killed by speeding drivers. The judges said the team ‘kept banging the drum for several years to make it happen’ and can be ‘rightly proud of creating positive change in the area they serve.’
The winner of the ‘Best Interview’ category was Global’s Newsroom Midlands with ‘Harry Dunn – A Family’s Fight by Lindsey Alder.’ The judging panel said it ‘displayed compassion and professionalism to get Harry Dunn’s parents to talk openly and movingly about their grief one year on and their ongoing fight for justice.’
Hits Radio Manchester was awarded ‘News Team of the Year’ in the over 1.5 million TSA category having impressed the judges with its ‘breadth of stories and a real feel for arresting audio.’ They said the team was ‘not frightened to take on big and varied material with flair and energy.’
The ‘News Team of the Year’ in the ‘under 1.5m TSA’ version was Hallam FM. A team ‘at the top of its game’ according to the judges who said listeners are being provided with a ‘range of compelling stories, neatly scripted and superbly produced.’
One of Hallam’s journalists, Ben Bason – who broadcasts across Bauer Yorkshire’s brands – was named ‘Newsreader of the Year’ in the ‘under 1.5m TSA’ category. The judges said ‘his bulletins are expertly constructed with relevance and localness throughout, taking the listener directly to the heart of the story.’ Adam Barber from Global’s Newsroom London won the Newsreader award in the ‘over 1.5m TSA’ version. ‘The judges remarked ‘he always sounds full of energy, confidence and passion’ and ‘when it comes to lighter content, you can always hear his smile.’
talkSPORT’s ‘GameDay Exclusive’ was the winner of the ‘Best Sports Coverage’ prize. It stood out for ‘its commitment to strong journalism, tackling heavy hitting subjects like racism and homophobia’ as well as ‘exclusive interviews’ and ‘top quality commentary, punditry and production.’
The ‘Reporter of the Year’ in the ‘over 1.5m TSA’ category was Charlotte Elmore from Global’s Newsroom Yorkshire and North East. She was recognised for her ‘superb, authentic storytelling, demonstrating a great mix of journalistic ability.’ In the ‘under 1.5m TSA version, Radio Tay’s Callum Clark was the winner. The judges were impressed with the ‘broad range of stories he has covered and the interviews he secured to bring them to life.’
Rock FM’s Hannah Makepeace was named ‘Newcomer of the Year.’ Judges described her as ‘a skilful reporter, committed to telling original stories for radio with flair and imagination.’
The Student Journalist of the Year award, which is supported by the Broadcast Journalism Training Council, went to David Applin from Canterbury Christ Church University for his documentary ‘Inside the Dark Web.’ It was described as an ‘outstanding piece of journalism that takes the listener on a compelling and sinister journey from the outset.’
The final award of the evening, the prestigious IRN Gold Award for an outstanding contribution to commercial radio news, was presented to LBC’s Lisa Aziz. She has reported on some of the biggest news stories from the past 38 years having started her career at Radio City in Liverpool before making the switch to television news with TV-AM, Sky News and ITV. She’s spent the last decade at LBC and currently presents breakfast on LBC News.
Accepting the award, Lisa Aziz said: “It’s a huge honour and I’m genuinely shocked at receiving it. It’s a strange time to be getting an award in a pandemic because personally, I consider it a privilege to be able to bring our growing audience a live breakfast show four hours a day alongside my core production team. It’s been wonderful to have had 38 years in the business, and counting, from those first early days at Radio City through to the 25 year TV adventure and now back to the powerhouse that is LBC. Thanks to everybody who works for me, my core production team and my bosses.
Commenting on the awards, IRN and Sky News Radio Editor Dave Terris said:
“Commercial radio audiences have an appetite for trusted journalism which they can relate to and this impressive group of winners are delivering it in abundance. Although the coronavirus pandemic has dominated the news agenda over the past 18 months, it has not deterred news teams from exploring a range of stories and delivering them skilfully and creatively. Congratulations to all the winners and nominees who continue to produce fantastic and important content for millions of listeners."
IRN Managing Director, Tim Molloy said:
“The standard of entries was as usual very high and our judges had a real challenge picking just five nominees in each category, but the winners all stood out and had that little extra something that gets your attention and whether a team or an individual each one should be extremely proud of their achievement after a very difficult year.”
The winners list in full:
IRN Gold Award
Lisa Aziz
News Team of the Year (Over 1.5m TSA)
Hits Radio News Team Manchester
News Team of the Year (Under 1.5m TSA)
Hallam FM News
Best News Special or Feature
Behind The Walls of Forest Bank – Global’s Newsroom North West
Reporter of the Year (Over 1.5m TSA)
Charlotte Elmore – Global’s Newsroom Yorkshire and North East
Reporter of the Year (Under 1.5m TSA)
Callum Clark – Radio Tay
Best Sports Coverage
GameDay Exclusive - talkSPORT
Campaigning Journalism Award
Joan’s Legacy – West FM
Best Interview
Harry Dunn: A Family’s Fight by Lindsey Alder – Global’s Newsroom Midlands
Newsreader of the Year (Over 1.5m TSA)
Adam Barber – Global’s Newsroom London
Newsreader of the Year (Under 1.5m TSA)
Ben Bason (Bauer Yorkshire)
Newcomer of the Year
Hannah Makepeace – Rock FM
Student Journalist of the Year - Supported by the BJTC
David Applin – Canterbury Christ Church University
NOMINATIONS ANNOUNCEMENT
The nominations for the 2021 IRN Awards in association with Sky News have been revealed.
The Awards celebrate the achievements of news and sports journalists in UK commercial radio in a wide range of categories including newsreading, reporting, campaigns and interviews and the nominations were announced by Sky News presenter Anna Jones ahead of a special video ceremony on Thursday 15th July at which the winners and the recipient of the IRN Gold Award were revealed.
There are 12 categories including the Student Journalist of the Year prize, which is supported by the Broadcast Journalism Training Council.
And the nominees are....
Newcomer of the Year:
Amelia Beckett - Greatest Hits West Yorkshire and Pulse 1
Alan Zycinski - Global's Newsroom Scotland
Hannah Makepeace - Rock FM
Sarah McKinley - Downtown Radio and Cool FM
Emma Corr - Global's Newsroom South
Newsreader of the Year (hubs or stations under 1.5m TSA):
Emma Kirwan - JACKfm Oxfordshire
Ben Bason - Bauer Yorkshire
Henry Winter - Greatest Hits West Yorkshire and Pulse 1
Chris Hubbard - Global's Newsroom East
Jo Summerbell - JACKfm Oxfordshire
Newsreader of the Year (hubs or stations over 1.5m TSA):
Katie Radley - Global's Newsroom Yorkshire and North-East
Selena Jackson - Clyde 1
Michael Gaffney - Global's Newsroom North West
Becky Cahill - Hits Radio
Adam Barber - Global's Newsroom London
Best Interview:
Adam Lawler: The Trial of Hashem Abedi - Global's Newsroom North West
A Paralysed Woman's Fight for Support - Hallam FM
Harry Dunn: A Family's Fight by Lindsey Alder - Global's Newsroom Midlands
A Coronavirus Survivor's Story: 'They were dying all around me.' - JACKfm Oxfordshire
128 Days Later: A Covid Survival Story - Global's Newsroom Scotland
Reporter of the Year (hubs or stations under 1.5m TSA):
Jo Summerbell - JACKfm Oxfordshire
Andrew Kay - Greatest Hits Radio, South Devon
Ben Bason - Bauer Yorkshire
Emma Kirwan - JACKfm Oxfordshire
Callum Clark - Radio Tay
Reporter of the Year (hubs or stations over 1.5m TSA):
Sarah Collins - Global's Newsroom North West
Matthew Thompson - LBC
Rosanna Robins - Bauer Yorkshire
Charlotte Elmore - Global's Newsroom Yorkshire and North-East
Rachael Venables - LBC
Campaigning Journalism Award:
Joan's Legacy - West FM
Exposing the Cladding Crisis - LBC
Securing a Stalking Bill for Northern Ireland – Downtown Radio and Cool FM
The Tyred Campaign - Radio City
Mental Health Monday - Greatest Hits Radio
Best News Special or Feature:
Beyond Home Farm: The HC-One Crisis - Global's Newsroom Scotland
The Knife Angel in Gateshead - Global's Newsroom Yorkshire and North East
On The Inside - Hallam FM
Behind The Walls of Forest Bank - Global's Newsroom North West
Justice for Harry Dunn - Global's Newsroom Midlands
Student Journalist of the Year - supported by the BJTC:
Jeannine Hyde - Bournemouth University
Nabil Mehdinejad - City, University of London
Alice Young - Leeds Trinity University
David Applin - Canterbury Christ Church University
Kayleigh Heckford - Bournemouth University
Best Sports Coverage:
Wilder v Fury II - talkSPORT
More Than Just a Game - Hits Radio and Greatest Hits Radio network England and Scotland
Global's North West Sports Coverage - Global's Newsroom North West
The Rise and Fall of Celtic Manager Neil Lennon - Clyde 1
GameDay Exclusive - talkSPORT
News Team of the Year (hubs or stations under 1.5m TSA):
MFR News
Radio Forth News
Hallam FM News
Northsound News
Radio Tay News
News Team of the Year (hubs or stations over 1.5m TSA):
Metro Radio News
Global's Newsroom Yorkshire and North East
Hits Radio News Team Manchester
Radio City
Global's Newsroom North West
IRN Editor and Chair of Judges, Dave Terris said:
Despite the challenges of reporting the coronavirus pandemic, news teams have adapted superbly and continued to innovate to produce high quality journalism. These nominations demonstrate the importance of people focused stories, investigations and campaigns that affect the millions of listeners who rely on commercial radio news and sport. Congratulations to everyone who has been shortlisted and my thanks to the judges for supporting the Awards.