The country’s top community journalists and newspapers were honoured at the glitzy Avbob FCJ Excellence Awards 2021 in Boksburg, Gauteng on Friday evening, 14 October.
The annual awards ceremony, hosted by the Forum of Community Journalists (FCJ) in partnership with brand-new sponsor Avbob, was a face-to-face affair for the first time since Covid-19 hit the world, the previous two ceremonies having been presented virtually. The awards recognise the sterling work of the community press countrywide.
Eikestadnuus and its editor, Angelo Julies, were among those applauded on the night, the newspaper placing sixth overall in the Newspaper of the Year category for corporate-owned free publications with a pagination of less than 24 pages. He finished in fifth place for editorial comment writing.
Other newspapers and journalists in the Boland Media stable were also recognised on the night, with the former sold title in the Helderberg, DistrictMail, placing second in the Newspaper of the Year category for corporate-owned sold newspapers with a circulation below 5 000, and Tasmin Cupido, editorial publisher for Helderberg and Eikestad Media, claiming third place in the editorial comment writing category for work published in DistrictMail.
Current DistrictMail & Helderberg Gazette journalist Rick Marais won third place in the investigative reporting category for work published in Hermanus Times. Weslander journalist Noluvu Ludidi came in third in the human-interest writing category and Phiwokuhle Mothemela of Worcester Standard placed fifth in the sport writing category. Weslander, Boland Media’s sold newspaper on the West Coast, placed second in the best front page category.
Other top 10 finalists of Boland Media were: Worcester Standard (sixth) and Weslander (seventh) – Newspaper of the Year; DistrictMail (seventh) – best front page; Swartland Gazette (sixth) – best front page; Jamey Gordon of DistrictMail (seventh) – news photography; JP Myburgh of Worcester Standard (ninth) – investigative reporting; Tamsyn Jantjies of Worcester Standard – human interest (ninth) and columns (10th); Mariëtte Strydom of Hermanus Times – headlines (sixth) and editorial comment (ninth).
