'Weekly Print Journalist of the Year'

I am very proud and honoured to report that today I was named 'Weekly Print Journalist of the Year' at the Regional Media Awards.

As I reported a few weeks ago, I was nominated for a portfolio of work which included a long-running road safety campaign after the death of a 23-year-old man, and two one-off investigative articles.

The first investigative piece revealed that hundreds of teachers accused of sexual abuse had never been reported to police by the education authority, despite dozens of them having the complaints upheld and receiving professional sanctions. I obtained the data by taking legal action against the Government.

The second told how a Government Jobcentre had unwittingly signed up an escaped life sentence prisoner, fleeing a jail term imposed for a brutal attack with an iron bar, and sent him to work for a local company. Despite using a known alias, his identity was only discovered when he threatened to murder his new boss over a pay dispute, at which his boss Googled his name and discovered him on a Crimestoppers 'Most Wanted' list. Jobcentre staff then refused to give police the dangerous criminal's address, claiming it was 'personal information'.

I was surprised and humbled to win, and must thank my editor Mick Ferris and my mentor and news editor Steve Neale, as well as the whole team at the Yellow Advertiser and all those who have supported me in my career to date.

Awards Nominations

A short note to say I am extremely flattered and grateful to have been nominated for two Regional Media Awards.

I have been nominated for 'Print Journalist of the Year' on a weekly newspaper, and a road safety campaign I ran following the death of a young musician has been shortlisted for 'Community Campaign of the Year'.

Among the articles for which my 'Print Journalist' nomination was awarded were two investigative pieces and one campaigning piece about the above road death.

The first investigative piece was the revelation that hundreds of teachers accused of sexual abuse had never been reported to police by the education authority, despite dozens of them having the complaints upheld and receiving professional sanctions.

The second told how a Government Jobcentre had unwittingly signed up an escaped con, fleeing a life sentence for a brutal attack with an iron bar, and sent him to work for a local company. Despite using a known alias, his identity was only discovered when he threatened to murder his new boss over a pay dispute, at which his boss Googled his name and discovered him on a Crimestoppers 'Most Wanted' list. Jobcentre staff then refused to give police the dangerous criminal's address, claiming it was 'personal information'.

I will find out whether I have won at a ceremony in late February, although just to be nominated is very rewarding, as the shortlist is selected by a panel of experienced journalists.

The Big Payback; Giving in the Name of the Godfather

Today the Orchard Times published my latest feature; the first of its kind (in-depth, multiple interviewees) that I've written since 2010.

The article, titled 'The Big Payback', explores James Brown's little-known humanitarian legacy and how his family has battled since his death to keep his charitable initiatives going despite receiving no financial assistance from his Estate.

Thanks to schemes launched by James Brown before his death, thousands of underprivileged families every year, across two US states, are able to eat a traditional Thanksgiving turkey dinner and give their children a bag of Christmas presents. Moreover, since 2011 the James Brown Academy of Musik Pupils (JAMP) - conceived by Brown in the years before he passed away - is helping Augusta teens to secure college scholarships.

James Brown hands out Christmas presents to underprivileged children in Augusta, Georgia, in the 1990s.
Picture supplied by the James Brown Family Foundation.

The story also explores James Brown's complex relationship with hip-hop music and his crusade in the final years of his life to promote legitimate, instrumental music and steer kids away from violent, demeaning lyrics.

To write the piece, which I did pro bono, I spoke to Mr Brown's daughters Deanna and Venisha, his long-time friend and producer Derrick Monk, JAMP co-ordinator Kimberly Baxter-Lee and several of the academy's young students.

Derrick read the feature for the first time earlier today and told me it brought tears to his eyes to see somebody write about 'the real James Brown'. That one comment made all of the work - which took over a year, on and off - worth it.

 Deanna Brown-Thomas hugs a recipient at the 2012 James Brown Christmas Toy Giveaway in Augusta.
Picture supplied by the James Brown Family Foundation.

Click here to read the article.

Back To School

Last month I received two letters in the post at work from children at a local primary school. They were studying 'how the media affects our lives' and they wanted a real-life journalist to come in and give a talk. Ordinarily I would have politely declined, as I am no fan of public speaking, but my colleague Suzi talked me into it.

So last week the pair of us went to the school and spent an hour being grilled by 60 kids, all aged 10 and 11. Their teachers hadn't told them in advance that we were coming in and when they discovered who we were, I was susprised to hear them all gasp. It was a big deal to them, which just made me even more nervous.

Lots of hands in the air, waiting to ask questions.

Thankfully, Suzi was brilliant. Having had some teacher training, she was able to talk to the kids on a level they could understand, adopting a sort of animated persona and keeping them giggling. They were a little too young to grasp a lot of what our job entails - trying to explain government corruption to a 10-year-old is a losing battle, and the content of a lot of the court and crime stories we cover would be entirely inappropriate for their age group.

 Suzi and I answering questions.

However, they were very entertained to hear that I had just interviewed a man who was about to chain himself to a tree to stop the local council from chopping it down, and they loved hearing about the time Suzi had lunch with Prince Charles. They asked, bizarrely, if either of us had met James Bond and were most excited to hear that I had once got Daniel Craig's autograph (nothing to do with work, though!).

We got some lovely 'thank you' letters in the post a few days later. One of them said, "Throughout the amazing hour you were here we have learnt much more about the media than we expected to know by the end of this topic. We had lots of fun and are now inspired to become journalists like you."

Pictures supplied by Laura Dance.

It was nice to see that the kids were so excited to have us there and to know that they enjoyed the experience. Maybe I'll be less hesitant when the next letter comes in.