LAST UPDATE | 24 Mar

THREE PROJECTS BY The Journal and its investigative platform The Journal Investigates have been nominated for the prestigious Mary Raftery Prize.

The prize is awarded annually to an individual or small team responsible for social affairs journalism produced in Ireland.

Of the five nominees on the shortlist, two are investigations carried out by The Journal Investigates, while The Journal received a nomination for journalist Saoirse McGarrigle’s work in highlighting the experiences of victims of prolific paedophile Micheal Shine. 

Órla Ryan has been shortlisted for her investigation ‘Falling Through the Cracks: Are young people with psychosis getting the help they need?’. 

Órla’s investigative series exposes how young people with psychosis are being forgotten by the Irish healthcare system. It was supported by the Rosalynn Carter Fellowship for Mental Health Journalism in partnership with Shine’s Headline programme.

Patricia Devlin has been shortlisted for her series ‘Wild Not Free: Is inaction on wildlife crime further threatening vulnerable species?’. 

Patricia’s investigation not only uncovered the brutal exploitation of wildlife, but also highlighted systemic gaps in enforcement of wildlife crime. Over the course of eight months, she carried out extensive undercover work to monitor and record the activities of illegal hunting networks operating across the country.

Órla and Patricia’s respective investigative series were overseen by editor of The Journal Investigates, Maria Delaney.

She said the nominations “demonstrate the commitment of the investigative unit to social justice and public interest journalism”, and added:

“Órla, Patricia and our wider team dedicated significant time and resources in order to undertake this reporting. It is thanks to the supporters of The Journal that we are able to publish such work as we are funded by readers’ contributions.

“Thanks also to everyone who participated in each series, without which we wouldn’t have been able to bring these issues to light.”

Saoirse McGarrigle’s nomination for the prize comes from her work on keeping the stories of men sexually abused by former surgeon and convicted paedophile Micheal Shine alive within the public sphere.

More than 360 men have reported being sexually abused by Shine. Saoirse has interviewed survivors of his abuse, many of whom spoke out for the first time, as they call for a public inquiry into the state’s handling of the case.

Editor of The Journal, Sinéad O’Carroll, said: “It is an honour for our journalists to be considered a part of Mary Raftery’s legacy. Saoirse McGarrigle is, like Mary Raftery always was, compassionate but dogged in pursuit of truth and justice.

“She has centred the voices of Michael Shine’s victims while questioning the decisions and actions of the State and those in power.

“To be shortlisted for this prize is welcome recognition that this work needs to continue.”

The Irish Times has also received two nominations. 

The full list of shortlisted nominees for the Mary Raftery Prize 2024 are:

• Naomi O’Leary, Colm Keena, Enda O’Dowd, The Irish Times – ‘Under the eye of landlord Marc Godart: how a tenant who objected to CCTV surveillance was evicted’
• Jack Power, The Irish Times – ‘Investigation into unregulated accommodation for children in care’
• Saoirse McGarrigle, The Journal – ‘Group of victims of paedophile former surgeon Michael Shine speak out for the first time’
• Órla Ryan, The Journal Investigates – ‘Falling Through the Cracks: Are young people with psychosis getting the help they need?’
• Patricia Devlin, The Journal Investigates – ‘Wild Not Free: Is inaction on wildlife crime further threatening vulnerable species?’

The Journal and The Journal Investigates (formerly known as Noteworthy) have won the Mary Raftery Prize on several occasions previously; last year, both scooped prizes as the winners for 2022 and 2023 were both announced. 

The Journal’s podcast Redacted Lives, which was produced by Órla Ryan, Nicky Ryan and Sinéad O’Carroll, won the 2022 Prize.

Calling Time, a Noteworthy investigation which revealed how the human rights of children of prisoners were not being fulfilled, won the 2023 Prize – it was written by Alice Chambers and Maria Delaney.

The 2020 Mary Raftery Prize was won by Peter McGuire for the Speak or Survive series on the institutional challenges faced by sexual violence survivors. It was published on The Journal and Noteworthy (now The Journal Investigates).

Mary Raftery, a renowned investigative journalist, is best known for her documentaries States of Fear and Cardinal Secrets which detailed the sexual and physical abuse suffered by children in reformatories, industrial schools and similar settings.

The Prize, eponymously named in memory of the groundbreaking journalist following her death in 2012, consists of a medal engraved with the winner’s name and an award of €1,000.

The winner of the Prize will be announced on Thursday 27 March.