Three separate Jimmy Savile stories have this year been shortlisted for scoop of the year at the London Press Club awards.
Freelance Miles Goslett has been shortlisted for his February story in The Oldie magazine – which was turned down by seven national newspapers – while Liz MacKean and Meirion Jones, who were behind Newsnight’s axed expose, are also finalists.
The third nominee is Mark Williams-Thomas for his ITV documentary, Exposure – The other side of Jimmy Savile, which he has already won two Royal Television Society awards this year.
It is believed the first time journalists have been nominated for such an award over a story which was spiked (in the case of MacKean and Jones). Williams-Thomas worked with them as a consultant on the story and went on to break it himself for ITV after the BBC opted not to air it.
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Elsewhere, The Times, Daily Telegraph and London Evening Standard are finalists in the daily newspaper of the year category. And in the Sunday category, The Sunday Times, Sunday Telegraph and Mail on Sunday are shortlisted.
The awards will take place on 22 May at Stationers’ Hall with Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe as the guest of honour.
London Press Club chairman Doug Wills, who is also managing editor of the Evening Standard and Independent titles, said: "Never has it been more important for our industry to celebrate the excellent journalism of which we are all rightly so proud. It was an amazing year for news and we are delighted to today announce the shortlists of the newspapers and individual journalists who our judges believe excelled in this challenging time."
Here are the shortlists in full:
Broadcast Journalist of the Year
John Humphrys (Today Programme, BBC Radio 4)
Lucy Manning (ITN)
Paul Wood (BBC)
Business Journalist of the Year
Tom Bergin (Reuters)
Steve Hawkes (The Sun)
Laura Kuenssberg (ITN)
Scoop of the Year
Miles Goslett (The Oldie) – Savile abuse scandal
Liz MacKean and Meirion Jones (Newsnight, BBC2) – Savile abuse scandal
Mark Williams-Thomas (Exposure, ITV) – Savile abuse scandal
Blog of the Year
Fleet Street Fox (Susi Boniface)
Roy Greenslade (The Guardian)
Guido Fawkes (Paul Staines)
Arts Reviewer of the Year
Mark Kermode (BBC Radio 5 Live, The Observer)
Neil McCormick (The Telegraph)
Chris Tookey (Daily Mail)
Daily Newspaper of the Year
London Evening Standard
The Daily Telegraph
The Times
Sunday Newspaper of the Year
Mail on Sunday
The Sunday Telegraph
The Sunday Times
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