‘I did not expect this’ - Journalist heading to Ja after winning first Barbara Blake-Hannah award

LONDON:

Kuba Shand-Baptiste, a journalist on The Independent ‘Voices’ news beat, has been named as the first winner of the Barbara Blake-Hannah Award for an up-and-coming journalist from a black minority ethnic background.

The awards ceremony hosted by the Press Gazette was held on December 9 in a virtual event and Blake-Hannah, 79, announced that Shand-Baptiste had won the prize via a video call from her home in Kingston, Jamaica.

Blake-Hannah said: “I’m so honoured to have this award presented by Press Gazette in my name and I’m so pleased to let you know you are the first wearer of this title. It was the unanimous decision by the judges. I just saw your work and picked you as my number one, but they know your work and it was a unanimous choice. They spoke so very highly of you.

“In addition to your award, the Jamaica Tourist Board has also offered two tickets to the winner of the award, and that’s you. Jamaica is looking forward to welcoming you. I look forward to meeting you in Jamaica.”

Shand-Baptiste responded by saying: “Coming from you especially, this is fantastic. I did not expect this. I got into journalism because there was nothing else I could do but write ,and it has always been my passion.”

Blake-Hannah became the first black person to appear on British TV in a non-entertainment role in 1968, landing the job of on-camera reporter for daily evening show ‘Today With Eamonn Andrews’, on Thames TV.

She went on to interview famous figures, including Prime Minister Harold Wilson and actor Michael Caine, but was sacked by Thames TV because of racist letters sent in by viewers.

The idea for the award was put forward by Sky News reporter Bree Johnson-Obeng, who had featured Blake-Hanna in a news story on her life during Black History Month last year. Bree approached the Press Gazette and put them in contact Blake-Hanna in Jamaica, where she has had a successful career as a film-maker and has also been an independent senator in the country’s Parliament.

INDUSTRY CHALLENGES

As the first winner of the Barbara Blake-Hannah Award for an up-and-coming journalist from a BAME background, Shand-Baptiste also spoke about the difficulties she faced when she tried to get into the industry.

She said: “I saw that the industry was notoriously difficult to get into, if you didn’t know anyone and if you didn’t have any contacts.

“I have been introduced to lots of other black journalists, in particular black women journalists who have taken me under their wing and given me indispensable advice. I just felt like I wanted to do that for as many people as possible, and working at The Independent, I feel like I have had that opportunity to sort of pass the baton on and let people take up the mantle and take up space in the industry in ways that I hadn’t really seen.

“I never, ever thought I would be awarded in any way. So thank you so much. This is amazing.”

The Press Gazette, UK’s leading online media trade magazine dedicated to journalism, hailed the Barbara Hanna-Blake Award among a series of new initiatives intended to help the British Journalism Awards better reflect the diversity of the UK.

Entry was free for any female and/or BAME journalists who did not have an employer willing to sponsor their entry. The initiative resulted in around 200 supported entries being submitted to this year’s event.