The Leader has been named Best Newspaper in the country at the Country Press Australia National Awards in Adelaide on Friday night, with The Barossa Mag named Best Magazine/Special Publication in the nation at the same event.
Finalists in the Country Press Australia awards were drawn from the reigning winners of relevant categories from awards’ nights held in 2024 by state associations in South Australia, Victoria, Queensland and New South Wales - with more than 240 newspapers eligible to enter.
Over 120 people attended the glittering awards night, held at the Hilton Hotel in Adelaide, including South Australian Premier, Peter Malinauskas, Google’s Head of News Partnerships for Australia and New Zealand – Nic Hopkins, along with a host of South Australian state and federal MPs, industry sponsors, publishers and their teams.
Member for Barker, Tony Pasin, MP; Member for Frome, Penny Pratt MP and Member for Light, Tony Piccolo MP, also attended the dinner.
There were two separate events held on the evening, with the Country Press SA annual awards night preceding the national announcements.
The SA awards also proved a significant event for The Leader, with the newspaper given its greatest recognition at a single awards’ ceremony since the paper’s inception in 1918. (See full list this page).
Co-Director and The Leader’s Director of Advertising Sales, Mr Darren Robinson said he is delighted with the results.
“The Leader has been recognised as the Best Newspaper in Australia, and secured six state awards, while The Barossa Mag received the award for Best Special Publication in Australia,” Darren said.
“Additionally, our sister newspaper, The Southern Argus was awarded Best House Advertisement in Australia and was awarded runner-up best newspaper in South Australia.
“Collectively, this represents the highest level of recognition in The Leader’s 107-year history. Notably, the National Awards have only been running for two years, with The Leader earning the runner-up position for Best Newspaper in Australia last year — an outstanding achievement,” he said.
In terms of the SA awards, Darren is celebrating the achievements of the newspaper on the state stage.
“The 114th Country Press SA Annual Awards provided an invaluable opportunity to celebrate excellence in regional news media,” Darren shared.
“I am incredibly proud that The Leader has once again been recognised as the runner-up for Best Newspaper in South Australia.
“Achieving this honour demonstrates a consistent commitment to delivering high-quality, trusted journalism to our community.
“This achievement would not have been possible without the support of our loyal readers and advertisers.
“Your trust allows us to continue our work, and for that, we are sincerely grateful.
“I also want to acknowledge the professionalism and dedication of our exceptional team, that work tirelessly each week to produce a newspaper of the highest standard.
“We remain passionate about our role in the community and we’re committed to delivering the local news that’s vital to you,” Darren said.
Editor of The Leader, Melissa Siri, echoed Darren’s comments, saying that results such as these would not be possible with a dedicated and cohesive team that works tirelessly for our readers and continually strives for excellence.
“I would also like to say thank you to our readers for being so engaged with the paper, for contributing your thoughts, photographs and stories to the team, for calling or emailing us with ideas and welcoming us at your events,” she said.
“Our local area and its people are the sole focus and purpose of what we do, to provide you with a trusted news source and bring you the stories that matter to our community.
“We remain dedicated to our readers and want to say thank you for your loyal support.
“These awards are for all of us!”
Awards at a glance
National Awards
In what proved wonderful recognition not only for this newspaper but South Australia in general, our state took out three of the six national award categories, with The Leader winning Best Newspaper 2024, The Barossa Mag winning Best Special Publication 2024 and The Leader’s sister paper, The Southern Argus, winning the best advertisement.
The awards were judged by the Regional Media Connect senior team and Peter Kennedy, Executive Director, Country Press Australia, with the judges comments as follows.
Best Newspaper - Judges’ comments
“When it comes to overall newspaper excellence, The Leader is indeed just that.
“The paper’s depth of editorial content, quality photography, a good balance of advertising content and aesthetically pleasing layouts make The Leader the absolute benchmark for this year’s national awards. This is a paper that knows its community well and serves it even better.
Congratulations to the team at The Leader!”
Best Special Publication - Judges’ comments
“This is a stunning publication, underpinned by beautiful photography, crisp and clear layouts and engaging articles about the people and communities of the Barossa.
“The Barossa Mag is a tribute to all who work on such a high-quality publication.
Congratulations to the team at The Barossa Mag.”
Country Press South Australia, Awards and recognition
On the same evening at the state event The Leader was awarded:
- Best Advertisement (image/branding).
- Best Advertisement (priced based).
- Best special publication, The Barossa Mag.
- Best community profile - Mel Jaunay, ‘Grief is Love’.
- Best Headline - ‘Vital Signs’.
- Best Photo - The Barossa Mag.
- Runner up - Best Newspaper (larger).
- Runner up - Best Advertising feature.