QLD Journalist of the Year for 2009 announced and more...

QLD winners announced
The Australian’s Michael McKenna has been named Queensland Journalist of the Year for 2009. At the Alliance’s Queensland Media Awards last Saturday McKenna also won Best Print/Online News Report, and shared the Best Sports Report honour with colleague Dan Koch. Late ABC TV chief-of-staff Albert Asbury was honoured posthumously with the Most Outstanding Contribution to Journalism Award. The Alliance congratulates all winners and nominees, who can be viewed at http://www.queenslandmediaawards.com.au/

Sedition and anti-terror
The Commonwealth Attorney-General’s department has released a discussion paper on Australia’s regime of anti-terror and sedition laws. After 2001, the Howard government brought in 44 separate anti-terror measures, some of which have important ramifications for freedom of speech and expression in this country. The new discussion paper is the result of wide consultation and attempts to address some of these issues. The Alliance is preparing a submission to the department to highlight possible areas for improvement. Download the discussion paper at: http://tinyurl.com/m28jd QLD

Tamil journalist jailed
Sri Lankan journalist J.S. Tissainayagam was sentenced this week to 20 years “rigorous imprisonment” under Sri lanka’s draconian anti terror laws. Tissainayagam was arrested in March 2008. More than 150 days later he was charged with terrorism related offences for articles he wrote in the North Eastern Monthly magazine in 2006 and 2007. The International Federation of Journalists has condemned the conviction. Read the pieces Tissainayagam was arrested for here http://tinyurl.com/ldmde8

The Reading List
The future of investigative journalism? Funded by ProPublica, Sheri Fink has just written this 13,000-word piece about euthenased patients in public hospitals post-Katrina. It was run in the New York Times. See http://tinyurl.com/n6qz2x

Courtesy of Australia's Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance.