Business News wins big at international awards
Business News has won five major accolades at the Alliance of Area Business Publishers’ awards announced in the US on Monday.
Senior journalist Claire Tyrrell’s profile on Housing Industry Association WA executive director Michael McGowan was praised by the judges for its ability to put a human face on a very bureaucratic role, after winning silver in the best personality profile category.
'Unblocking pipe after snake eats wombat' details the serendipitous circumstances that informed the industry executive’s journey to the top of Western Australia’s peak housing body after construction delays, supply chain constraints and labour shortages came to a head.
Notably, the award-winning profile unravels Mr McGowan’s experience rebuilding his East Victoria Park family home after it went up in flames the day before his job interview.
“As a result, it succeeds in communicating vital information about what makes both this subject and the housing market tick,” the AABP judges said in a statement.
Former Business News senior journalist Matt Mckenzie won a silver award in the investigative reporting category for 'A combined 2,243 days on the waiting list'.
“Matt Mckenzie’s analysis gives a stark view of the lengthy approval process and examines its impact,” the judges said.
Managing editor Sean Cowan said it was the second year in a row that Business News’ dedication to journalism had been recognised by its international peers with a swath of awards.
“It's extremely pleasing for our leadership team but is also just reward for the efforts of our excellent team of journalists and all the staff at BN who contribute to the products that make us indispensable to our subscribers,” he said.
“I should offer special recognition to the individuals who won awards: Claire Tyrrell and Matt Mckenzie.
“Their stories stood out to the judges for different reasons; Claire because of her ability to tell the story of an individual and Matt for his efforts to highlight the amount of red tape in the exploration field.”
Under the reputable best of show category, Business News’ website took out the top award for its minimalist design that makes the homepage easy for readers to navigate important news stories.
“There are clear, descriptive labels on the images mixed with a combination of simple headlines and subtext,” the judges said.
The At Close of Business podcast produced in-house at Business News earned a silver award in its category, led by former hosts Jesinta Burton, Jordan Murray and contributor Gary Adshead.
The daily podcast was recognised for its well-defined structure that “adds to the utility of the podcast, with the news briefing providing the latest headlines and the in-depth interviews with Business News contributors adding context”.
“The show’s quality and consistency are even more impressive given that the podcast is produced and released on a daily basis, and the information included seems exactly tailored to the medium,” according to the judges.
Business News’ Afternoon Wrap, which consolidates news headlines and the At Close of Business podcast, won a bronze award in the best daily email category.
Landing in inboxes every afternoon, the email was commended for being “simple, clean and concise” and giving readers a solid understanding of what it offers even at a brief glance.
“The selection of topics which the content covers are wide, but visual markers make it easy to find what one wants and dive in as deep as time or interest allows,” according to the judges.
The Alliance of Area Business Publishers (AABP) awards are judged by the University of Missouri School of Journalism’s faculty and aim to recognise the products and editorial achievements of leading business publications, most of which are in the US.
Business News’ director of sales Paula Connell travelled to Detroit to collect the independent business publication’s armful of awards at the event on Monday.
The series of awards builds on the publication’s collection of AABP awards, most notably the five accolades received at the gala event in Columbus last year.
The awards come as Business News launched its second Power 500 publication yesterday, which features the 500 most influential Western Australians.