The Belfast Telegraph has been shortlisted six times across five categories at the Society of Editors’ Media Freedom Awards, underscoring the city newspaper’s role in covering issues that have resonated across Northern Ireland.
Recognition for investigation and frontline reporting
The nominations include two entries in the Regional Investigation of the Year category, reflecting the paper’s work on the cost of Covid-19 oxygen generators and its reporting on the unrest that followed a knife attack in north Belfast this June.
- Regional Investigation of the Year (two nominations): reporting on the £4.2m procurement of Covid oxygen generators and coverage of the June protests;
- Regional Broadcast Investigation of the Year: the BelTel Podcast episode on the protests and the assault on Northern Ireland Editor Sam McBride;
- Regional Young Journalist of the Year: East and South Belfast reporter Abdullah Sabri;
- Social Media Journalist of the Year: Visuals Editor Kevin Scott;
- Regional News Media Organisation of the Year: the Belfast Telegraph as a whole.
The investigation into Covid oxygen generators revealed that units procured by the Belfast Trust on behalf of Northern Ireland’s health trusts cost a total of £4.2 million. Reporting by the newspaper found that maintenance costs for five generators that have never been used had risen to more than £630,000, an element of the reporting singled out for recognition.
The second investigation nomination reflects the paper’s coverage of the violent disturbances in June that followed a knife attack in north Belfast. The unrest, which saw homes, vehicles and a bus set alight and people targeted on the basis of their race, prompted intense local and national scrutiny.
Frontline work and younger reporters spotlighted
The BelTel Podcast episode shortlisted for broadcast investigation chronicled the challenges journalists faced while covering the street protests, including an assault on the paper’s Northern Ireland Editor while he sought to question demonstrators.
“We are delighted to celebrate this outstanding group of nominees and the contribution they make to a healthy, informed democracy.”
The comment was made by Dawn Alford, chief executive of the Society of Editors and co-chair of the awards judges, as she announced the nominations.
Individual reporters have also been singled out. Abdullah Sabri, the paper’s East and South Belfast reporter, was nominated for Regional Young Journalist of the Year for work that includes reporting on the Chinese consulate in Northern Ireland and investigations into houses in multiple occupation. Kevin Scott, Visuals Editor, was recognised in the Social Media Journalist category for his rapid-response coverage of the north Belfast knife attack.
| Category | Named work / individual |
|---|---|
| Regional Investigation of the Year | Covid oxygen generators probe |
| Regional Investigation of the Year | Coverage of June protests |
| Regional Broadcast Investigation of the Year | BelTel Podcast – protests episode |
| Regional Young Journalist of the Year | Abdullah Sabri |
| Social Media Journalist of the Year | Kevin Scott |
| Regional News Media Organisation of the Year | Belfast Telegraph |
Local implications
For readers in Belfast, the shortlist highlights the centrality of regional journalism in scrutinising public spending and reporting on community tensions. The oxygen generators story raised questions about procurement and subsequent costs to health trusts; the protest coverage documented episodes of racially motivated violence and the stress placed on journalists working in volatile situations.
Recognition at national awards can affect newsroom morale and public trust. Being shortlisted across multiple categories places a spotlight on the resources and risks involved in investigative and frontline local reporting, and may influence how local institutions and residents engage with the press going forward.
The winners of the Society of Editors’ Media Freedom Awards will be announced at the awards ceremony. Meanwhile, the nominations themselves serve as an acknowledgement of work that has shaped public debate in Belfast and across Northern Ireland over the past year.
