RTÉ Nationwide Wins 8 Awards at Justice Media Awards 2017
Top row L-R: Dyane Connor, Brian O'Connell, Eithne O'Brien, John Cooke
Bottom row L-R: Katie Hannon, Nigel Power, Ken Murphy (DG, Law Society), Eoin Ryan, Stuart Gilhooly (President, Law Society) Mary Fanning, Cora Ennis.
RTÉ Nationwide has been announced as the Overall Justice Media Award Winner for 2017 as part of eight awards won by RTÉ at the Law Society of Ireland’s Justice Media Awards 2017. Reporters and producers from across RTÉ were successful in the categories of Television Features, Television News, Court Reporting for Broadcast; and National Radio. The awards ceremony took place yesterday (Thursday 22nd June) at the Law Society’s headquarters in Blackhall Place.
The RTÉ Nationwide team including Mary Fanning, Mary Kennedy and Eileen Magnier won both the Overall Justice Media Award for 2017 and the TV Features and Documentaries category. The judges commented that “ Shining a light on two very positive legal initiatives - Street Law and the Law Society Access Programme - this feature is a heat-warming, entirely original, well-produced programme that focuses on the work being done to ensure the solicitors, barristers and judges of the future are a diverse, tech-savvy, highly-educated group."
RTÉ Radio 1's Evelyn O'Rourke was awarded the top prize in the National Radio category for her Family Court Reports series. The judges stated: "The experience and skill of this reporter is more than evident in her presentation of a series of emergency applications and other cases involving family breakdown and disputes. Keeping the human side of each court report to the forefront, while clearly outlining the legal processes, orders and decisions, these are excellent examples of reporting difficult and often highly-emotionally charged cases."
The Television News Justice Media Award was won by RTÉ Prime Time'sPolitical Correspondent Katie Hannon and producer Nigel Power for their reportRTÉ Prime Time: The McCabe File. The judges praised the report saying: "The revelations, outlined in this excellent report, that child sexual abuse allegations made against Garda whistleblower Maurice McCabe were false and had been made in error, compounded by evidence that the claims were spread widely via an orchestrated smear campaign, sent shockwaves through the country and revealed a disturbing element at the heart of the justice system. The fallout from this skillful broadcast was huge among the public and in political and legal circles, leading to the establishment of an independent Garda review and a statutory inquiry, among other investigations."
A certificate of merit in the National Radio category was awarded to RTÉ Radio 1's John Cooke for his series of radio reports on the human stories from the repossession courts on Today with Sean O'Rourke. The judges noted: "Delivered in his distinctive style, this reporter goes behind the statistics and political-speak surrounding the ongoing housing crisis - thrown into the spotlight in particular during the 2016 election campaign - and asks homeowners to describe the process in their own words, and the toll it takes on families."
RTÉ Prime Time reporter Eithne O'Brien was awarded a certificate of merit in the Television Features and Documentaries category for her Prime Time report'Legal Pains' with the judges saying that it was "A truly moving examination of the effect the adversarial medical negligence system has on affected families."
RTÉ News reporter Dyane Connor was awarded a merit certificate in the Television News category for her news report on the potential dangers of Ransomware attacks on law firms which struck a "balance between alerting the public to the potential hazards while avoiding the common pitfalls of technical jargon and a scaremongering effect."
A certificate of merit in the Court Reporting Broadcast category was awarded to Today with Sean O’Rourke’s reporter Brian O'Connell for his report on the difficult cases of family home repossessions in the run up to Christmas.The judges said: "This reporter's experience and sensitivity shine through in this powerful, poignant piece which brings listeners deep into the heart of an increasingly difficult aspect of the legal system."