This year's Frewin, McCall and, Joel Mervis Awards saw new newspapers enter for the first time.
This is good news says the Awards’ convener of judges, Clive Loxton, creative faculty head of the AAA School of Advertising, especially against the backdrop of poor performing economy. “We commend the shareholders for their bravery and not inconsiderable investment; in both time and money, to produce a result South Africa can be proud of.”
The Awards recognise newspaper excellence in advertising, printing and production, layout and typography as well as the balanced use of pictures and graphics. The Frewin Award category recognises urban daily newspapers with a circulation above 50,000, while the McCall Award category honours urban daily newspapers with a circulation of 50,000 or less. The Joel Mervis category, recognising urban weekly newspapers irrespective of their circulation.
Loxton says the winners epitomise what one expects from them. “Firstly, there is attention to detail in every facet of their work, and secondly, a love of their craft. While they all differ in their “look” they achieve this page after page.”
He adds that the competition was very fierce in all three categories and thanked his fellow judges, Logan Naidu, Tebogo Serabatse and Linda Rademan – all recognised experts in their fields, for their valuable contribution.
The 2017 Standard Bank Sikuvile Awards, which this year incorporates the Frewin, McCall and Joel Mervis Awards is an annual recognition of excellence in South African journalism. The Awards ceremony will take place on Thursday, 19 October at The Venue Greenpark also known as Johannesburg World Trade Centre in Sandton, Gauteng.
