Sky News picked up two gongs at the Press Gazette’s Future of Media Awards, for the Money blog and the podcast series, Patient 11.
Money was recognised in the live journalism category at the Press Gazette’s Future of Media Awards, beating competition from the Financial Times, the Telegraph, Bloomberg and the Athletic among others.
“This is a great idea for the audience. Responds to readers’ questions by delivering the content they ask for, as well as real-time reporting. It is what interactive journalism should do,” the judges said.
Launched in January, the live blog covers personal finance and consumer news, the markets, interest rates, inflation and anything else that matters to the money in your pocket, offering tips and advice on making your money go further.
Highlights of the year include:
Patient 11, won in the national podcast category, after being shortlisted alongside entries from the Financial Times, Politico, The Times and The Sunday Times and Tortoise Media among others.
The four-part podcast series from Sky News and The Independent, tells the story of Alexis Quinn, whose escape from psychiatric care led to a landmark national investigation that has revealed tens of thousands of unreported allegations of sexual assault and rape in NHS mental health inpatient units across England.
The judges said: “Production of this podcast was excellent with lots of texture, nice sound design and interviews all contributing to an intriguing story which draws the listener in.
“It also appeared to have a real-world impact on government thinking.”
Narrated by Nicholas Pinnock (Top Boy, Django, For Life), Patient 11 recounts the dramatic story of Quinn, a young mother and former GB swimmer with undiagnosed autism, and how her three-day admission in a secure mental health hospital turned into a three-year ordeal of isolation, forced restraint and sexual assault, before a daring plot to break free.
Sparked by Alexis’ testimony in Patient 11, Sky News and The Independent worked together for nearly 18 months investigating sexual abuse allegations in NHS England mental health trusts.
The findings of this work have been described as a ‘national scandal’ by former Victim’s Commissioner Dame Vera Baird. The investigation has prompted calls for a major inquiry by Charlie Brooker, one of the authors of the 2019 gold standard government-backed sexual safeguarding protections, The Sexual Safety Collaborative.