Newspaper making their own headlines!

Local Ireland, the representative body for print and online news publishers – including the Connacht Tribune – around the country, has launched its annual awards to celebrate regional journalism.

The 2022 Local Ireland Media Awards, now in their seventh year, will honour the achievements of journalists, photographers and advertising staff.

This year’s competition will be the fifth to be sponsored by the National Lottery, which has its own award for Best Community Story.

President of Local Ireland, Declan McGuire of the Connacht Tribune, said he was delighted to launch this year’s awards.

“The role that local news publishers play is essential in our communities and our trusted, professional, quality content has never been more highly valued,” he said.

“No other media can compare with our hyperlocal coverage of news, sport, entertainment and culture.

“Thanks to digital, we have never had so many readers. Last year we expanded our digital awards categories. This  year I am pleased to announce we will introduce a new category for Columnist of the Year, which will be judged by the eminent author and broadcaster Dearbhail McDonald.”

CEO of the National Lottery Andrew Algeo was equally delighted to be yet again associated with the awards.

“The Local Ireland Media Awards are a reflection of the very best of journalism in Ireland and highlight the impact that local media has with the communities that they serve,” he said.

“Just like local media, the National Lottery is embedded in every town and village in Ireland, through our players, our retailers and of course our Good Causes beneficiaries and the community groups which they support.

“We are especially proud of our long-term association with the Local Ireland Awards and we look forward to seeing the award entries from some incredible journalists from all around the country,” he added.

Executive Director of Local Ireland Bob Hughes said the awards ceremony would be held on October 13 at the Bloomfield House Hotel in Mullingar.

“I’m delighted that Marty Morrissey has again agreed to be our host for the evening. He presented our Virtual Awards last year but this year we are looking forward to our nominees being honoured in person by their peers,” he said.

Chair of the judging panel will be Áine Kerr, Chief Operating Officer of Kinzen, former Manager of Global Journalism Partnerships with Facebook and former Managing Editor of Storyful. She will be joined by Dearbhail McDonald, Emeritus Professor at TUD Michael Foley, Dawn Wheatley of DCU School of Communications, Managing Director of Kinetic Ireland Andrew Sinclair, photographer and former Irish Times Picture Editor Frank Miller, broadcaster and writer Valerie Cox, and journalist and author PJ Cunningham.