Wrapping up another great year for The Southern Argus, regional media’s night of nights saw your local newspaper well-placed among its competitors, taking home two major awards, including a special one for The Argus’ own Tara Nash.
The annual Country Press SA Awards night held at Adelaide’s InterContinental Hotel on Friday brought together more than 100 journalists, editors, advertising and other media representatives, sponsors, and politicians to celebrate local newspapers’ 2023 coverage.
The Southern Argus was the name on MC and comedian Dave O’Neil’s tongue, receiving the most mentions ever in its history over several categories, starting off with second place for Best Front Page at the top of the night.
The Argus placed second in multiple other categories, including equal second with its sister paper The Leader for Best Advertising Feature, and Best Road Safety Reporting.
A special mention for Best Headline was given to The Argus’ wittily titled ‘Raise A Cask’, while The Great Duck Race feature entertained judges, earning third place in the Best Community Advertising Promotion.
The Argus went on to win Best House Ad, but the real highlight of the night came when Argus journalist Tara Nash was awarded Excellence in Journalism for her reporting on domestic violence survivor Glyn Scott.
Judge Kym Tilbrook commended Tara on her “excellent” and “compelling” article.
“Like other entries on domestic violence in recent years, it leads a lasting impact on the reader,” he said.
“Tara wrote that domestic violence is sadly still a prevalent issue in our society, with one in three women and two in five men reporting experiencing physical violence.
“It is not easy to find domestic violence victims who will go into great detail about the shocking violence in their past, but Tara built up a rapport with Glyn and wrote the well-crafted article for White Ribbon Day.
“Tara is to be congratulated on her interview and story which met all the criteria for the award – ‘a local news or human-interest story – must be breaking news, delving into an issue in the entrant newspaper’s community’.”
The celebrations continued when the Barossa’s Leader newspaper was crowned Best Newspaper for the larger category, making it a back-to-back win.
Meanwhile, The Argus came a close runner-up in the smaller category.
“As an all-inclusive association, this year’s awards promised to be the most fiercely contested in recent memory,” Country Press SA President, Darren Robinson, said.
“With well-over 400 entries across 19 award categories, it was an enormous achievement for your local newspaper The Southern Argus to be recognised so prominently across several categories.
“Achieving runner-up Best Newspaper in the state underscores the commitment and dedication of The Southern Argus team in consistently delivering high-quality news coverage and engaging its readership.
“Building upon last year’s success as the Best Newspaper, these latest achievements reaffirms the paper’s exceptional standards and enduring excellence within the local news media industry.
“With such a commendable track record, The Southern Argus continues to set the benchmark for excellence in journalism and remains a pillar of integrity.”
This year was the healthiest the competition it has been for all categories, and although The Argus just missed out on Best Newspaper, Editor Deirdre Graham said the team should be immensely proud of its strong showing in a number of awards, proving its strength across all elements of producing a quality newspaper.
“The Argus is a small team of talented newspaper professionals that punches well-above its weight against larger mastheads in its circulation zone,” she said.
“A particular congratulations to Tara Nash, and fellow Argus journalist Giorgina McKay whose talent was also on display at Friday’s ceremony.”
Judge’s comments
Victoria’s Bob Yeates noted The Southern Argus’ style and layout stood out from other papers submitted for consideration.
“The Southern Argus has consistent bold headlines on the front pages, engaging editorial copy, and good photography through its pages… it is certainly alive and vibrant,” he said.
“The ink lay down on the newsprint for The Southern Argus was heavier than other papers submitted, but it did not distract from its professional presentation.
“It was very good to see consistent community engagement in The Argus signalled with its strong Letters to the Editor page week in week out.
“A great measure of how any local paper engages with its local community.”