View all newsletters
Sign up for our free email newsletters

Fighting for quality news media in the digital age.

Press Awards: Dacre urges press to get on ‘front foot’

By Dominic Ponsford

After a night in which the Mail titles picked up ten prizes at the Press Awards – editor-in-chief Paul Dacre urged the press to “get on the front foot” in the face of the challanges raised by the hacking scandal and the Leveson inquiry.

Dacre personally picked up the prizes for campaign of the year and the Cudlipp Award – for the Daily Mail’s long fight to get justice for Stephen Lawrence – and newspaper of the year, the top prize of the night.

Speaking exclusively to Press Gazette after picking up the newspaper of the year prize, he said: “The Daily Mail is a great newspaper and Britain is a better counry because of the enormous contribution of the newspaper industry. We have got to get out on the front foot and say that.”

He said the danger is that the fallout from the hacking scandal is going to “chill us all into submission” and “that would be very dangerous” adding that the press needs to be more “a bit more confident in proclaiming its virtues”.

He added: “I understand that it’s been a ghastly few months but the great majority of the news industry is honest and there is an awful lot to be proud of… I think the British public has the common sense to take that on board and the politicians have too.”

The other prizes picked up by the Daily Mail were: showbiz journalist of the year for Ben Todd, feature writer of the year for David Jones, columnist of the year and best of humour award for Craig Brown, news team of the year and website of the year for Mail Online.

Craig Brown also won critic of the year for the Mail on Sunday and that title’s long-serving editor Peter Wright, who is stepping down, won the judges’ special award.

Content from our partners
MHP Group's 30 To Watch awards for young journalists open for entries
How PA Media is helping newspapers make the digital transition
Publishing on the open web is broken, how generative AI could help fix it

After picking up the prize for campaign of the year, Dacre said: “I’d just like to pay tribute to Dorren and Neville Lawrence who are the real heroes of this story. Neville came to see me today and it was a very moving experience. And our message is this is unfinished business, there are still other guilty people.”

Picking up the newspaper of the year prize, Dacre said: “I’d just like to pay the most enormous tribute to all the journalists on the Daily Mail and Mail Online our new very successful equal partner. I pay tribute to their extraordinarily selfless commitment. I pay tribute to their huge professionalism and talent. I’m very proud of them. I’m also very very proud of the British newspaper industry and I’d like to say that for the most part I still believe it’s the greatest newspaper industry in the world.”

Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog

Select and enter your email address Weekly insight into the big strategic issues affecting the future of the news industry. Essential reading for media leaders every Thursday. Your morning brew of news about the world of news from Press Gazette and elsewhere in the media. Sent at around 10am UK time. Our weekly does of strategic insight about the future of news media aimed at US readers. A fortnightly update from the front-line of news and advertising. Aimed at marketers and those involved in the advertising industry.
  • Business owner/co-owner
  • CEO
  • COO
  • CFO
  • CTO
  • Chairperson
  • Non-Exec Director
  • Other C-Suite
  • Managing Director
  • President/Partner
  • Senior Executive/SVP or Corporate VP or equivalent
  • Director or equivalent
  • Group or Senior Manager
  • Head of Department/Function
  • Manager
  • Non-manager
  • Retired
  • Other
Visit our privacy Policy for more information about our services, how New Statesman Media Group may use, process and share your personal data, including information on your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications.
Thank you

Thanks for subscribing.

Websites in our network