BBC Breakfast won Scoop of the Year at last night’s Royal Television Society Television Journalism Awards 2021.
It was recognised for its coverage of Free School Meals, through a series of exclusives with Marcus Rashford MBE.
Sally Nugent undertook a number of interviews with the footballer as he put pressure on the Government. Breakfast was also the first to hear his reaction to the news that he would be receiving an MBE.
“It was a real privilege to follow Marcus’ quest to end child food poverty in England last year,” said Nugent.
“To be recognised with the RTS Television Journalism award for Scoop of the Year is such an honour and myself and the BBC Breakfast team are thrilled to take home the prestigious award.”
MediaCityUK-based BBC Breakfast was also the first breakfast news programme to ever be nominated in the Daily News Programme of the Year, but it missed out to ITV News at Ten.
Granada Reports
Another winner in the North West, was Hannah Miller from Granada Reports, who was named Nations and Regions Presenter of the Year.
“The judges commended Hannah’s ability to represent her audience in everything she tackled,” said RTS.
“They were impressed with how she got to the heart of each story with her probing style and authority but they also praised her warm personality and courtesy. Her storytelling technique was another measure that made her entry stand out, with tightly written scripts, which always complemented the pictures. They felt she truly symbolised her region.”
The RTS Judges Award was given to all the technical teams in recognition of the “ingenuity, innovation and speed” they demonstrated this year to keep journalism on the air.
“This has been an incredibly challenging year for all journalists and news organisations. Despite the difficulties of covering the Covid-19 pandemic, all the broadcasters who enter these awards have distinguished themselves with some remarkable coverage and every one of the nominees would have been a worthy winner,” said Chair of the Awards, Simon Bucks.
“Moreover, many of them were not about the Coronavirus, but a range of other important stories which in any normal year would have dominated the agenda. I congratulate them all.”
