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 Awards has been in existence for 67 years, and the McCall Award for 55 years.

Convener of judges was Clive Loxton, Creative faculty head of the AAA School of Advertising, and fellow judges included Logan Naidu, Tebogo Serabatse and Linda Rademan.

This year’s finalists are:



Frewin
  • Citizen;
  • Beeld; and
  • Die Burger

McCall
  • Volksblad;
  • The Witness; and
  • The Mercury.

Joel Mervis

  • Mail &Guardian;
  • Rapport;
  • Naweek Beeld; and
  • City Press.

The winners will be announced at the awards ceremony that will take place on at the end of July or early August at a venue in Johannesburg. The Awards are hosted by Print and Digital Media South Africa (PDMSA), an umbrella body incorporating print and digital media.

The standard is very consistent with last year, as are the entries, says Loxton. “The entries that always win stand out for their attention to detail and this year was no different.”

He adds that in general the entries reflect the times that we are living in. “It is tough out there, especially for newspapers. With half the population in South Africa under 25 years old and not in the habit of reading a newspaper this does not bode well for the sector.”

However, considering the economic times, he adds it is encouraging to see that shareholders are still investing time and effort in the quest for excellence. “The standards were still high and the people who work in newspapers still care very much about their craft.”

The sports section, use of illustrations and typography are all areas that impressed and have improved over the years. “The one common thread with the winners is that they all use images effectively. I would encourage newspapers to use bigger pictures as pictures make an enormous impact,” says Loxton.

By and large this year’s entries, and entries numbers were not surprising, with the exception of one or two well-known newspapers that did not enter this year.

For more information, visit www.pdmedia.org.za. Alternatively, connect with them on Facebook or on Twitter.