The annual Walkley Awards are presented in Australia to recognise and reward excellence in
journalism. They cover all media including print, television, documentary, radio, photographic and online media. The
Gold Walkley is the highest prize and is chosen from all category winners. The awards are under the administration of the Walkley Foundation for Journalism.
The Nikon Photography Prizes are also awarded by the Walkley Foundation at the awards ceremony, on behalf of
Nikon.
History
The awards were instituted in five categories in 1956 by businessman Sir
William Walkley
Sir William Gaston Walkley (1 November 1896 – 12 April 1976) was a New Zealand oil company executive. Walkley was a founder of Australian oil company Ampol and was credited with being one of the early pioneers in opening up the northwest of A ...
, founder of
Ampol
Ampol Limited is an Australian petroleum company headquartered in Sydney, New South Wales. Ampol is the largest transport energy distributor and retailer in Australia, with more than 1,900 Ampol-branded stations across the country . It also ope ...
. After his death, the awards were handled by the Australian Journalists' Association which, in 1992, was merged into the
Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance
The Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance (MEAA), also sometimes referred to as the Alliance, is the Australian trade union and professional organisation which covers the media, entertainment, sports and arts industries.
Its Musicians section c ...
. In 2000, the alliance voted to establish the Walkley Foundation. In that same year, the Walkley Awards were merged with the Nikon Press Photographer of the Year Awards.
The 2015 ceremony was held on 3 December at
Crown Casino
Crown Melbourne (also referred to as Crown Casino and Entertainment Complex) is a casino and resort located on the south bank of the Yarra River, in Melbourne, Australia. Crown Casino is a unit of Crown Limited, and the first casino of the n ...
in
Melbourne and was broadcast through an online live stream as well as on
A-PAC. In 2016, the event moved to the
Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre
Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre (BCEC) is a convention centre in Brisbane, Australia. It is located in South Brisbane and occupies most of the block formed by Grey Street, Melbourne Street, Merivale Street, and Glenelg Street. The centre ...
.
Awards
Excluding the non-fiction book award, only work published by Australian-based media organisations is eligible for an award. Entries are initially evaluated by a jury on newsworthiness, research, writing, production, incisiveness, impact, public benefit, ethics, originality, innovation and creative flair — or other relevant criteria in respect of graphics and electronic media. The jury shortlists three entrants to the Walkley Advisory Board, who select the best entrant in each category, as well as the winner of the "Press Photographer of the Year", "Journalism Leadership Award" and the "Gold Walkley" awards.
Finalists are chosen by an independent board of eminent journalists and photographers. The awards cover all media including print, television, radio, photographic and online media. They can be regarded as the Australian equivalent of the
Pulitzer Prize
The Pulitzer Prize () is an award for achievements in newspaper, magazine, online journalism, literature, and musical composition within the United States. It was established in 1917 by provisions in the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made h ...
.
[AAP MediaNe]
Media Release: The Walkley Awards
, retrieved 6 December 2006
The Gold Walkley is the major award, being chosen from all category winners.
[
The awards have been archived by the Pandora Archive since 2002.]
The finalists are formally announced in October each year and the awards are presented at a formal ceremony in late November or early December.
Categories
, awards are given in the following categories:
Major categories
* Gold Walkley
* Outstanding Contribution to Journalism
* Nikon-Walkley Australian Press Photographer of the Year
The Nikon-Walkley Australian Press Photographer of the Year, or Nikon-Walkley Press Photographer of the Year is awarded to the photographer whose body of work is considered the best in the country for that year. It recognises newsworthiness, im ...
Longform journalism
*Walkley Book Award
The Walkley Book Award is an Australian award presented annually by the Walkley Foundation for excellence in long-form journalism and nonfiction, with subjects ranging from biography to true crime to investigative journalism and reporting.
Winne ...
*Walkley Documentary Award
The Walkley Documentary Award is an Australian award presented annually since 2011 as part of the Walkley Awards
The annual Walkley Awards are presented in Australia to recognise and reward excellence in journalism. They cover all media includ ...
Print/text journalism
* News Report
* Feature writing short (under 4,000 words)
* Feature writing long (over 4,000 words)
Photography
* News Photography
* Sport Photography
* Feature/Photographic Essay
Nikon Photography Prizes
These are not Walkley Awards, but administered by the Walkley Foundation on behalf of Nikon.
*Photo of the Year
*Portrait Prize
*Community/Regional Prize
*Contemporary Australian Daily Life Prize
Radio/audio journalism
*News and Current Affairs
*Audio Feature
Television/Video journalism
*News Reporting
*Current Affairs Short (less than 20 minutes)
*Current Affairs Long (more than 20 minutes)
*Camerawork
All media
*Innovation
*Coverage of a Major News Event or Issue
*Scoop of the Year
*Business Journalism
*Coverage of Community & Regional Affairs
*Investigative Journalism
*Coverage of Indigenous Affairs
*Sports Journalism
*Public Service Journalism
*Commentary, Analysis, Opinion and Critique
*Headline, Caption or Hook
*Production
*Cartoon
Historical categories
* Journalism Leadership (1997–2017)
* Broadcast Interviewing (1997–2017?) - various name changes, most recently Interviewing.
* Three Headings
* Newspaper Feature Writing
* Magazine Feature Writing
* Artwork
* Daily Life Photography
* Editorial Graphics and Design
* Best Use of Medium
* Coverage of Suburban or Regional Affairs
* International Journalism
* Coverage of Asia-Pacific Region
* Coverage of Sport
* Social Equity Journalism
* Commentary, Analysis, Opinion and Critique, Commentary, Analysis, Opinion and Critique
See also
* List of journalism awards
This list of journalism awards is an index to articles about notable awards for journalism. It is organized by the region and country of the organization that sponsors the award, although some awards are not limited to one country.
Internationa ...
* Prizes named after people
References
External links
*
{{Authority control
Australian literary awards
Australian journalism awards
Awards established in 1956
1956 establishments in Australia