THE Clare Champion has been shortlisted in seven Local Ireland Media Awards categories, the highest of any regional newspaper in the country. The next highest are The Connacht Tribune and Connaught Telegraph both shortlisted in four categories.
The Local Ireland National Lottery Media Awards recognises regional newspapers, which are producing quality journalism and innovative content, showcasing to the public that local news matters, and should be supported.
Out of 12 categories The Clare Champion is up for awards in seven, with entries shortlisted for News Story of the Year; Sports Story of the Year; Best News Series of the Year; Best Supplement of the Year; Photographer of the Year; Best Digital Content; and National Lottery Best Community Story.
This is the fourth year of the National Lottery Annual Media Awards, and marks the first time that The Clare Champion has been shortlisted in seven categories.
Editor Peter O’Connell said, “This is a great achievement for our newsroom, production staff and sales staff”.
Those shortlisted include Jessica Quinn whose story centred on a proposed Supermacs development entitled “Bogus Letters ‘Shocking'” has been nominated for News Story of the Year.
Reporter Owen Ryan is nominated for Sports Story of the Year for ‘Travellers quit soccer due to racist abuse’. He is also shortlisted with Carol Byrne for Best News Series having examined the drugs crisis in Clare.
Carol Byrne is nominated for the National Lottery Best Community Story for an article with Gerard Madden, whose local community got behind him after his boat tour business was the subject of an arson attack.
Multi award winning photographer John Kelly is shortlisted again for photographer of the year this time for a photo capturing a blue tit nesting in an ashtray box in Ennistymon.
The newspaper is shortlisted for best digital content with multiple contributors lending their weight to this entry including sports journalist Derrick Lynch, photographer John Kelly, and journalists Carol Byrne and Owen Ryan.
Meanwhile, The Clare Champion production team is nominated for Best Supplement of the Year for Where West – a special pull-out which promotes all that the West of Ireland has to offer during the summer months.
A native of Ennis, Colin McGann has been editor of The Clare Champion since August 2020. Former editor of The Clare People, he is a journalism and communications graduate of Dublin Institute of Technology.