Belfast Telegraph

In a competitive field covering a wide range of different approaches to live news coverage, the Belfast Telegraph stood out as a “masterclass in multi-platform reporting” for its ability to quickly and accurately break and contextualise complex and important stories, utilising multimedia and excellent journalistic skills to spectacular effect. 

Two examples stand out. Firstly, in February 2023 the site broke the news that two gunmen had shot off-duty Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) officer John Caldwell in Omagh. It was a story that ran throughout the night and into the next morning, with constant updates and joint reporting from the title’s dedicated fast news reporter, news editor and crime correspondent. 

Months later, Sam McBride broke the news that the PSNI had mistakenly published the personal data of every one of its officers and civilian employees. Within an hour of speaking to a senior PSNI press officer who was audibly in shock, the piece was live and media outlets across the country followed it up. McBride teamed up with the publication’s fast news reporter to provide rolling updates and analysis throughout the evening - garnering more than 74,000 page views.