The 36th AVBOB FCJ Excellence Awards have attracted a record number of entries.
A total of 538 entries were received for the 2025 competition, which awards work published
in 2024. Last year, a total of 513 entries were received, and the year before that, a total of
527 entries were received.
Most entries were received for Best Front Page (83), Hard News (78) and Human Interest
(71).
The judging is currently underway, and this difficult task is being handled by 20 seasoned
professionals. They are Dr André Gouws, convener of judges, Alé Steyn, Buks Viljoen,
Chantel Erfort Manuel, DeWet Potgieter, Elsabe Retief, Johann Maarman, Kyle Cowan,
Lucia Poolman, Marlene Malan, Mercy Kannemeyer, Nomakhawuta Mo, Pieter Delport,
Thalyta Swanepoel, Tobie van den Bergh, Virginia Keppler, Willem Kempen Zee Zenande,
Yolanda van der Stoep and Mlungizi Louw.
Dr André Gouws said the Avbob FCJ Excellence Awards are a personal highlight of the year for him as
convener of the judging panel. “I always look forward with great anticipation to the year’s
entries, to see what community newspapers around South Africa are doing.”
“Adjudicators happily offer their time and expertise because of their deep love for
community journalism. Community journalism has become even more important in South
Africa since the closure of several national and regional print newspapers in 2024.
“We have a powerful panel of adjudicators, who are all journalism experts. Some are
academics, and some are current or former journalists. This mix of people brings a variety
of perspectives to our panel, which ensures that judging will be impartial and fair,” he added.
The judging will be completed by the end of June, and finalists will be announced early in
July.
The spectacular gala evening, where the winners will be honoured, will be hosted in
Stellenbosch on Friday, 22 August.
You must be logged in to post a comment.