By any standards there is a bumper crop of entries in The Press Awards (the new national newspapers awards event organised by the NPA and the Society of Editors). And scoop of the year promises to be a particularly hard-fought category.
There were so many good contenders for this one that the organisers felt compelled to put eight in the shortlist, rather than the usual six.
The Treasury Chief, his secret lover and the £40k claim at The Daily Telegraph was a great story – prompting what is believed to be the quickest UK cabinet minister resignation from a government in history.
Lib Dem Tapes at The Daily Telegraph was another great story, albeit one which is still tinged with controversy over the use of subterfuge when there was no advance evidence of wrongdoing and over questions about why key information was omitted from the initial story.
Cricket Corruption at the News of the World was by any standards a stonker – the revelation, in the middle of a test match, that Pakistan players were involved in match-fixing has had wide-ranging ramifications.
WikiLeaks at The Guardian involved a historic series of revelations about the conduct of the war in Iraq and about the contents of classified US embasssy communications.
Hacking at The Guardian has been an impressive and dogged investigation, albeit one where the initial revelations were made back in 2009 (rather than 2010).
World Cup: Cash for Votes Scandal for The Sunday Times was another superb example of undercover journalism in the public interest – in which two Fifa officials were filmed by journalists offering to sell their influence over the location of the 2018 and 2022 football World Cups.
News that England star Wayne Rooney had slept with a prostitute was a biggy for the Sunday Mirror, although the News of the World also carried the story – evidently the Sunday Mirror has claimed it as its scoop.
The Secret Life of John Venables for The Daily Mirror provides the other red-top contender.
The Press Awards judges have a tough job on their hands picking a winner. Take part in this fun quiz to have your say about who you think should take the top prize, and give your reasons why at the end of this story.
(NOTE: Press Gazette is not involved in organising The Press Awards. I was a judge in one of the categories, but not this one.)
(PS: It goes without saying that the results of this poll will have no bearing whatsoever on the judging process!)
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