All too often, the voices of children, young people, and their families are excluded from the dominant media narrative in Australia. Despite increasing awareness around issues impacting children and their families, such as domestic violence as well as the sexual exploitation of children, media reports tend to disregard children as victims in their own right. Many stories also diminish the significance of meaningfully representing the voices of children and young people. For this to change, the way in which these stories are reported must change.
That is why the Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare (the Centre), the peak body for Victoria’s children, young people, and their families, will recognise journalists who have sought to elevate the voices of children and families in a respectful and material way over the past year with our Media Awards. Launched in 2020, the Media Awards highlight the excellent reporting of journalists who centre the experiences and voices of children, young people, and their families.
The Media Awards will include the following categories;
- Best story about children
- Best story about young people
- Best story about children or young people in out of home care
- Best story about families
How to submit a story
If you’re interested in submitting a story to one of the above categories, please send a link or copy to your story to [email protected] by COB Friday 3rd September, along with your name, contact details, and the award you’d like to nominate for.
The awards will be presented at the Centre’s AGM in November, date to be confirmed.
Eligibility
- Any stories or pieces published or broadcast during the last financial year (1 July 2020 to 30 June 2021) are eligible for entry.
- We will be accepting pieces across all media formats including print, online, TV, radio, digital and podcasts.
- The awards are open to all Australian-based journalists from media outlets, including freelance journalists, and those who have self-published.
