Investigative reporting projects published by three students completing their Master of Journalism degrees at the University of Melbourne have been nominated for the 2024 national Democracy’s Watchdogs award.
Filment Ho, James Worsfold and Brendan Kearns – now a cadet at News Corporation Australia – were among five finalists from universities across Australia and New Zealand. Their stories were produced as part of their investigative journalism portfolio.
Filment Ho’s story on Myki ticket inspectors disproportionately targeting international students, which was co-published with Crikey.com, was commended by the judges as a “solid investigation into an issue rarely explored” and “showed what reporters can accomplish by hard slog”.
Judges said that James Worsfold’s investigation into the grey area surrounding lease transfer fees charged by real estate agents was “a polished investigation” which “uncovered new detail and may encourage tenants to challenge fees in future”.
Brendan Kearn’s story, published in The Australian, about the promotion of energy drinks on university campuses, was “insightful and in the public interest”, according to the judges. “The investigation showed the extent of the marketing push at universities – huge and concerning to health experts – but ignored by universities,” the judges said.
2022 Democracy’s Watchdogs award winners with their trophies.
In 2022, students from the Centre for Advancing Journalism won the Democracy’s Watchdog award for their investigation into the breathtaking state of truck pollution in Melbourne’s inner west, which was co-published with The Age, and in 2020, two students won for their investigation into how China uses Muslim press trips to counter claims of Uighur abuse, which was co-published in the United Kingdom with The Observer.
Democracy’s Watchdogs is a non-profit organisation which aims to honour the work of Australian investigative journalists and educate the public about the process and value of investigative journalism. It was founded by Dr Bill Birnbauer, a veteran investigative reporter and senior editor at The Age and The Sunday Age, and former journalism educator at Monash University. Birnbauer was recently recognised as an alumni of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalism.
