For the second year running, The Citizen has won top honours in the annual national Ossie Awards for Student Journalism, with Jess Malcom recognised as the 2020 Student Journalist of the Year.
Jess Malcolm was recognised for a body of work focused on rural and regional reporting. The judges said of her portfolio: “Writing with flair, accuracy and mastering today’s digital media complexities are today’s basics that stand a journalist apart. This year, our winner, Jess Malcolm, dug deep and exposed hidden gems by going country – reporting on bees, seaweed and pig poo, to name a few. Jess’s solid academic record shone, delivering information packed articles with passion, accuracy and clarity.”
Jess also won the Monash Climate Change Communication Research Hub prize, and was highly commended in the Best Text-based Story by a Post Graduate alongside another Citizen reporter, Benjamin Silvester. Her reports for The Citizen can be viewed here. She has recently graduated and taken a position as a cadet with The Australian based in Sydney.
In 2019, Citizen reporter Claire Capel-Stanley was recognised in the same category.
The Journalism Education and Research Association of Australia’s student journalism awards are named after journalist Osmar S. White. A full list of the Ossies 2020 winners can be found here.
