The Daily Dispatch has once again brought home the lion’s share at this year’s regional leg of the Vodacom Journalist of the Year Awards, winning four categories and two commendations.
The Dispatch’s sister publication, The Herald, was the next biggest regional winner, with two awards and three commendations.
Dispatch reporters who brought home the gold included Lulamile Feni and Sikho Ntshobane, who together won both the Live Reporting and Breaking News category for “Shattered mother buries three daughters” as well as the Opinion category for “Tragic aftermath of torrent will haunt me forever”.
Ziyanda Zweni won the Finance and Economics category for “Mom of four in fight for R2.4m RAF payout”, as well as a commendation in the Opinion category.
Sivenathi Gosa won the Sports category for “Outrage as pupils are shunted to dilapidated athletics facility”.
Asanda Nini earned a commendation in the Politics category for “Flashy BCM boss triggers Scopa lifestyle audits call”.
Traditional media holds power accountable and ensures transparency.
— Vodacom SA’s managing executive for the Eastern Cape, Zakhele Jiyane
The Herald’s Nomazima Nkosi and Brandon Nel won the investigative category for “Held Hostage by Extortion Rackets” while the Features category was won by Nkosi and Kelly Milborrow from The Herald for “Turning the Page”.
On their winning entry for breaking news, the judges said Feni and Ntshobane had “transcended the journalistic bounds of reporting that dictate the journalist should at all times be removed from the subject of their reporting. Instead, it empathetically depicts pain that no person would wish on anybody”.
The judges said theirs and Zweni’s opinion pieces were “of extraordinary emotional power and journalistic integrity”.
They called Gosa’s winning entry an “excellent example of public-interest journalism and objective reporting that holds local government accountable” and said the “brave examination of negligence in the maintenance of municipal sports facilities in Buffalo City Metro exposed the crisis of children from diverse racial and income backgrounds being ‘shunted’ off their own fields and vindicated the public’s interest in maintaining viable community resources”.
The judges said Zweni’s winning finance entry was “told with compassion and meticulously documenting the plight of multiple victims” and it “touched the hearts of the region’s auditors”.
Vodacom SA’s managing executive for the Eastern Cape, Zakhele Jiyane, said: “In an era of AI and digital platforms, credible journalism is crucial. Traditional media holds power accountable and ensures transparency.
“Vodacom SA proudly honours excellence in journalism, highlighting its vital role in society and demonstrating our ongoing commitment to the media industry.
“Vodacom is deeply invested in the Eastern Cape, committing more than R400m this financial year to expand network infrastructure,” Jiyane said.
Daily Dispatch
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