The NT Independent has won another NT Media Award, this time for Best Text News Coverage, beating out the ABC and The Australian, marking the fifth gong for the online newspaper since starting in March 2020.

On Saturday night editor Christopher Walsh took out the award with his entry Shares Scandal: The Fall of Chief Minister Natasha Fyles.

It followed Walsh being named as a finalist in the 69th Walkley Awards last Thursday for his work on the same topic, his political shares scandal reporting that led to the resignation of the Chief Minister. This is the second year in a row the Independent has been shortlisted in Australia’s pre-eminent national journalism awards.

The NT Journalist of the Year award went to trio Kylie Stevenson, Caroline Graham and Matilda Colling, for their entry NT Schools in Crisis, which was freelance reporting published in The Australian/The Weekend Australian.

The Marchbanks Award for the Best Young Journalist of the Year award was taken out by Lillian Rangiah from the ABC for her body of work.

Last year Walsh and journalist David Wood won the NT Media Awards Best Crime/Court reporting in the All Media category for their coverage of the police’s systemic failures in the shooting death of Kumanjayi Walker and the cover-up in the subsequent murder trial of former NT Police officer Zach Rolfe.

The NT awards—organised by the Media and Entertainment Arts Alliance, the Walkley Foundation and the Darwin Press Club—were judged by a panel of academics, journalists and editors from major media outlets across the country.

READ: More hidden shares revealed: Fyles blocked investigation into mine she holds undisclosed shares in

READ: Chansey Paech’s shares in grog distribution company revealed

READ: REVEALED: Potter bought shares in ‘major project’ while ministerial adviser

FULL LIST OF WINNERS OF THE 2023 NT MEDIA AWARDS:

TEXT: Best News Coverage

Christopher Walsh (NT Independent) “Shares Scandal: The Fall of Chief Minister Natasha Fyles”

TEXT: Best Feature Writing

Kylie Stevenson (Freelance published in The Weekend Australian Magazine) “Profile: Yingiya Guyula”

TV/RADIO: Best News Coverage

Matt Cunningham (SKY News Australia) “Spotlighting Territorian News”

TV/RADIO: Best Current Affairs or Feature

Matt Garrick, Raveen Hunjan, Shaun Kingma, Fred Shaw (ABC) “Community Under Curfew”

TV/RADIO: Excellence in Radio Broadcasting

Alex Barwick, Piia Wirsu, Grant Wolter, Elsa Silberstein, Blythe Moore (ABC) “Expanse: Spies in the Outback”

BEST ONLINE COVERAGE

Kylie Stevenson, Caroline Graham, Matilda Colling (Freelance, published in The Australian/The Weekend Australian) “NT Schools in Crisis”

BEST SPORTS JOURNALISM

Lillian Rangiah (ABC) “Remote sport trials and triumphs”

BEST CRIME/COURT REPORTING

Liam Mendes (The Australian) “Body of Work”

PETE DAVIES MEMORIAL CAMPAIGNING JOURNALISM AWARD

Kylie Stevenson, Caroline Graham, Matilda Colling (Freelance, published in The Australian/The Weekend Australian) “NT Schools in Crisis”

INDIGENOUS AFFAIRS REPORTING

Kylie Stevenson, Caroline Graham, Matilda Colling (Freelance, published in The Australian/The Weekend Australian) “NT Schools in Crisis”

VISUAL STORYTELLING

Rebecca Parker (Freelance, published in The Australian/The Weekend Australian) “NT Schools in Crisis”

GOLD AWARD WINNERS

MARCHBANKS AWARD FOR BEST YOUNG JOURNALIST

Lillian Rangiah (ABC) “Body of work”

2024 NT JOURNALIST OF THE YEAR

Kylie Stevenson, Caroline Graham, Matilda Colling (Freelance, published in The Australian/The Weekend Australian) “NT Schools in Crisis”