2024 The Write to End Violence Against Women Awards winners announced

WEVAW 2024 Awards

On 28th November, The End Violence Against Women Coalition and Zero Tolerance held the 2024 Write to End Violence Against Women Awards, recognising responsible and accurate journalism on men’s violence against women.

Sophy Ridge, Sky’s lead politics presenter, emphasised how hopeful she felt when uniting with women campaigning to change the way violence against women is portrayed in the media.

Sophy shared her thoughts on the media’s responsibility in tackling men’s violence against women and girls, and suggested they do this by holding the government to account, with their commitment to halving violence against women in a decade.

She also reflected on her involvement with the End Violence Against Women Coalition’s campaign to raise the legal threshold for requests for rape survivors’ private counselling notes in police investigations.

Sophy highlighted how the media has a role in tackling victim blaming, creating a culture of believing women, and treating all victim-survivors with respect – not creating a hierarchy where some women’s stories are worth of being told and others are ignored.

Awards for 2024

Following public nominations, the 2024 awards recognised excellence in four categories:

The shortlist this year was incredibly strong, with each judge acknowledging how difficult this made their decision. The winners had a clear ‘wow’ factor – shedding light on the issue in an innovative way, from a unique perspective or covering an under-reported aspect of violence against women and girls (VAWG).

Best News Award

Shehnaz Khan, BBC News, Forced marriage cases will stay ‘underground’ after law change

Our first judge Rosemary Douce, Head of Standards and Regulation at IPSO, awarded our Best News award to Shahnaz Khan for her article focused on the continued harms of forced marriage despite changes in the law.

Rosemary highlighted the new perspective brought to the article, the prominence given to the voices of survivors, and the use of statistics to put the story in context.

Shehnaz accepted the award, describing it as an ‘honour’ and thanking the women she spoke to for trusting her to tell their stories. “It means a lot to me to be able to share stories that I really care about from underrepresented communities that aren’t often heard.”

Best Feature Award

Amandas Ong, Jacobin, Britain’s Asylum Process Endangers Sexual Violence Survivors

Our second judge, Lexie Kirkconnell–Kawana, CEO of Impress, presented this award to Amandas Ong for centring the women in the story with empathy, and bringing solace to people with similar experiences of navigating hostile bureaucracy in Britain.

Amandas’ piece stood out in a media climate that can be hostile to migrants and refugees, and Amandas was transparent with her own opinion in the feature. It was an educating and informing piece that provided context, held authorities and policies to account, and offered real solutions.

Amandas was ‘humbled’ to accept the award. “At every turn I have been amazed by how funny, imaginative, and resourceful [the women] are with their different personalities, but at the same time it is also impossible to deny the extent and complexity of the sexual trauma that they’ve faced, whether in their own countries, on a difficult journey here, or in the UK.”  

Amandas wished to highlight the culture of scepticism and lack of understanding that permeates healthcare and bureaucracy in the UK, and she expressed her gratitude to the women for sharing their story with her. “This story is really for them… The way we work as journalists is so incredibly important, how do we work with care, how do we cast survivors of sexual violence as whole and complex human beings, and work with them rather than relying on tropes of victimhood to tell a story?”

Best Opinion & Comment Winner

Mireille Harper, Glamour UK, Why does Cassie’s trauma need to be seen to be believed?

Our third judge Dr Natasha Hirst, President of the National Union of Journalists, said she had an uplifting experience judging the awards. She awarded Mireille Harper’s piece on the systemic disbelief of Black women, which brought in survivors’ experiences alongside expert opinions; highlighting the inequalities that disproportionately affect Black women and the wider impact this has on access to safety and justice.

Mireille thanked Glamour for platforming the piece and supporting her advocacy, dedicating the award to Sistah Space and the Casandra Centre; two organisations doing brilliant work in the space of violence against Black women, and her mother who spent years working in domestic abuse services. ‘It’s equally celebratory and heartbreaking to win this award, especially at a time where it feels like violence against women isn’t just rife but also lauded… I also fear the age we are in is one where the currency of violence reigns and where women of colour globally are paying the price. Unfortunately, misogynoir remains on the rise.”

Referencing the online harassment she received in backlash to her piece, Mireille encouraged journalists and readers to think more intersectionally about men’s violence against women and centre Black women and those who are most marginalised and invisibilised.

Best Investigation Winner

Hannah Summers, The Bureau of Investigative Journalism, Family Court Files Series

Our next judge Andrea Simon, Director of the End Violence Against Women Coalition, awarded the Best Investigation award to Hannah Price for exposing systemic failing in the family court system’s handling of violence against women.

Hannah’s meticulous reporting combined rigorous investigation with ethical journalism, and the investigation achieved a landmark ruling allowing the naming of a perpetrator in family court proceedings, which creates better transparency in the system. It prompted an internal review of Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service regarding their assessment procedures, encouraged discussions at the Ministry of Justice about legislative change on parental rights, and it provided a template of how family court cases involving sexual violence can report responsibly.

Hannah accepted the award and spoke of her initial hesitance to name Christopher White, but the victim’s support drove her forward. Hannah recognised her resilience going through the court process, appeal, and the rapist being named in the press. “I was really pleased to be able to interview the mother in this case and to give her a voice.”

Experts’ Pick: Best Broadcast Award

Anna Hall, Candour TV, The Push

Our next judge Rachel Adamson, Co-Director of Zero Tolerance, awarded our ‘experts’ pick’ award for best broadcast piece to Candour TV for their piece ‘The Push: Murder on the Cliff’.

The Push is a documentary that does more than tell a story; it gives voice to Fawziyah Javid’s legacy. It challenges assumptions around who is affected by domestic abuse and told a story with cultural understanding and care. “To Fawziyah’s family, your bravery in telling this story will inspire others to seek help and speak out. To the filmmakers, your dedication sets a new standard for responsible journalism about so-called honour–based abuse and domestic abuse.”

Anna Hall couldn’t attend the event but shared the following message: “The Push has now been recognised all over the world and we are so grateful to the bravery of the Javed family in their determination to tell the story of what happened to Fawziyah. Fawziyah was a remarkable woman who documented her abuse during her marriage and her evidence led to her husband’s conviction at her own murder trial. Fawziyah’s story shows us that domestic abuse can happen to anyone – a privately educated lawyer from Leeds. And her family wanted Fawziyah’s story to be told to give others the courage to leave their abusive relationships.

Thank you so much to the Judges for the recognition of this work – we are extremely grateful.”

Natasha Rattu from Karma Nirvana, a specialist charity for victims and survivors of honour-based abuse in the UK, which supported the making of the documentary, spoke of how The Push has increased recognition and understanding of domestic and so–called ‘honour’-based abuse.

Natasha reported women saying that what they are experiencing looks like what was shown in the documentary, and she highlighted that every time we tell these stories with respect, we honour the lives of the women we’ve lost.

The awards finished with a Q&A with the judges and speakers.

Congratulations to all the award winners and shortlisted journalists. The media has a crucial role to play in shaping our collective attitudes, raising awareness of on men’s violence against women and the support available to survivors, and holding perpetrators to account.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to The Write Violence Against Women Awards 2024 and all the journalists who write about men’s violence against women responsibly.