THE Guardian won two prestigious awards at the annual 2019 Victorian Country Press Association awards in Melbourne last Friday night.
The newspaper claimed best magazine or special publication for the 2018 edition of Your Swan Hill and best community campaign (2000-6000 circulation) for its comprehensive Swan Hill needs a new hospital campaign.
The awards were held at Bobby McGee’s and attended by more than 300 people.
Elliott Newspaper Group Mid-Murray area manager Rob Duffield said management and team at The Guardian deserved the best magazine or special publication award, describing is as equivalent to the Gold Logie.
“The local content in this quality magazine is vibrant, positive and really shows our region at its best,” he said.
“Thank you to all the local businesses and special locals who have contributed to this special local project.”
Mr Duffield said it was also “rare” for a local issue, such as the campaign for a new hospital, to capture the imagination of the local community.
“This issue is one our editorial team and I have continually creatively driven over many months.
“The $30 million of federal funding allocated pre-election and this special award has been very satisfying, but the job isn’t quite done yet.”
In the judges’ comments, they said it was difficult to separate the top two entrants, with Your Swan Hill coming in a close second last year.
The magazine claimed the same award in 2017.
“This year it goes one better,” the judge said.
“Your Swan Hill concentrates on positive attributes of the region’s community, and this obviously resonates with potential advertisers.
“The 2018-19 edition is more than 200 pages with lots of advertisements and plenty of interesting stories on local achievers and activities.
“It is a quality, perfect bound magazine that could sit proudly on any coffee table.”
The best community campaign award was “deserving”, according to the judge.
“A great example of the newspaper leading this campaign and giving its community a voice aimed directly at the Victorian Government,” the winning comments read.
“This is what a local newspaper does best — taking on an issue that has whole-of-community backing and running with it.
“The first front page story to launch the campaign summed it up, using a well thought out graphic and headshots of a silent premier and health minister. The campaign in print and online continued over many months with every angle covered, culminating with a rally, urging readers to take along a poster inserted in the paper.
“The paper produced t-shirts, badges and stickers for participants.”
