The best news websites ranked alongside top print editions in this year’s PANPA Newspaper of the Year awards, presented in Sydney last night.
News Limited’s couriermail.com.au was named national news destination of the year, and its Darwin stablemate, ntnews.com.au regional news destination. News also won the innovation award for news.com.au, with Fairfax New Zealand’s Rugby Heaven iPhone app named specialist site of the year.
News also won the innovation in pre-production process or technology award for its national view of advertising inventory application.
Regular winners were again prominent in the technical excellence awards.
Double width category winners were ‘The West Australian’ (90,000+), Fairfax Media’s Capital Fine Print for the ‘Canberra Times’ (25,000-90,000 copies), News Chullora for the ‘Weekend Australian’ and Fairfax Printing Ormiston for its production of the ‘Australian Financial Review’.
In the single-width category, Apple Daily’s ‘Apple Daily (90,000+) and ‘Sharp Daily’ (25,000-90,000) was joined by APN News Zealand for the ‘Bay of Plenty times’ (under 25,000).
West Australian Newspapers was also honoured for its ‘Habitat’ supplement (90,000+), with Capital Fine Printagain honoured for ‘A Day to Remember’ (25,000-90,000) and Fairfax stablemate FRP Tamworth for ‘Lifestyle of the 50-plus’ (under 25,000).
Images and issues from the Christchurch earthquake dominated the winners list in this year’s PANPA Newspaper of the Year awards, with the local Fairfax daily, ‘The Press’ taking the title in its 25,000-90,000 circulation category.
Judges recognised the “incredible and outstanding efforts in capturing the tragedy of the moment and the stories behind it”.
Earthquake coverage also helped APN flagship the ‘Sunshine Coast Daily’– a title judges said was “doing everything right” – to a win in the 10,000-25,000 circulation category.
At the big end of town, ‘The Age’ was named over 90,000 copies winner, and the ‘Sunday Mail’ Sun day newspaper of the year.
The full list of winners was:
Newspaper of the Year–
90,000+: The Age
25,000-90,000: The Press
10,000-25,000: Sunshine Coast Daily
Up to 10,000: Gladstone Observer
Non-Daily Newspaper of the Year–
90,000+: St George & Sutherland Shire Leader
25,000-90,000: The Christchurch Star and The Land (tie)
10,000-25,000: Stock Journal
Up to 10,000: Geraldton Guardian and Koori Mail (tie)
Sunday Newspaper of the Year: Sunday Mail
News Destination of the Year–
National/Metropolitan: Couriermail.com.au
Regional/Suburban/Rural: NTnews.com.au
Speciality/Niche Site: Rugby Heaven iPhone App - Fairfax NZ
Innovation in Digital Publishing: news.com.au
News Photograph of the Year–
National/Metropolitan: Craig Greenhill Daily Telegraph - Christmas Island Tragedy and Iain McGregor, The Press - Christchurch Earthquake (tie)
Regional/Suburban/Local: Paul Carracher, Wimmera Mail-Times - Locusts Attack
Features Photograph of the Year–
Metropolitan/National: Brad Hunter, Daily Telegraph - Under the Skin
Regional/Suburban/Local: Michael Copp, Moonee Valley Weekly - The Road Back
Lifestyle Photograph of the Year–
National/Metropolitan: Richard Robinson, New Zealand Herald - Ice Diving
Regional/Suburban/Local: Andy Drewitt, Diamond Valley Leader - Dusty Star
Sport Photograph of the Year–
National/Metropolitan: Phil Hillyard, The Daily Telegraph - The Sports Portraits
Regional/Suburban/Local: Andrew Ritchie, Western Suburbs Weekly - Swimmer
Portrait of the Year–
National/Metropolitan: Gregg Porteous, The Daily Telegraph - Hackett
Regional/Suburban/Local: Roy Vandervegt, Messenger Leader – Racket
This year’s Hegarty prize winer is Nigel Tutt of Fairfax NZ.
The environment awards went to Nationwide, News Limited, marking the individual contribution of Dr Tony Wilkins. The Health and Safety award went to Fairfax Regional Printing, Dubbo, for a retrofit guarding system, and to Nationwide News for its ‘industrial athlete’ scheme.
Technical excellence:
Single-width, over 90,000 copies– Apple Daily; 25,000-90,000– Sharp Daily; Up to 25,000– APN Print New Zealand.
Double-width, over 90,000– The West Australian; 25,000-90,000– Capital Fine Print and News Ltd Chullora; up to 25,000– Fairfax Printing Ormiston.
Preprint or supplements, over 90,000– West Australian Newspapers; 25,000-90,000– Capital Fine Print; up to 25,000– Fairfax Regional Printing, Tamworth.
