From the war in Syria, to Hindu-nationalist inspired vigilante violence in India; from the remembrance of Tsumani victims in Japan to secret, state-surveillance of American Muslim communities in Chicago, and the sexual bullying and harassment of teenage girls by their peers, winners and runners up in the Sandford St Martin 2020 Awards were united by focusing on the promotion of empathy, exposing social injustice and making the world a better place.
Chair of the Sandford St Martin Trust, the Rt Revd Helen-Ann Hartley, Bishop of Ripon said:
“When it comes to educating the public and building community, there is nothing to compare with broadcasting and journalism. It’s been heartening and feels timely that even as we are striving to understand the reach and repercussions of the COVID-19 pandemic, our broadcasters are grappling with the big questions and how they and we can contribute in a meaningful way to building a better world. I’m very proud that this year’s winners and runners up epitomise the best of both broadcasting but also broadcasting with meaning.”
Congratulations to this year’s winners and runners up. You can read more about their programmes below.
Or click here to see all the programmes shortlisted for a 2020 Award.
Journalism Award: The Feeling of Being Watched: Surveillance in a US-Arab Community
Al Jazeera English – Witness for Al Jazeera English
Another timely documentary in which the journalist Assia Boundaoui investigates how and why the FBI targeted the Muslim American neighbourhood where she grew up in one of the largest “counter-terrorism investigations ever conducted in the US. Boundaoui pulls back the layers to reveal how America’s “War on Terror” has impacted not just on how communities are seen from the outside in, but also how it has psychologically affected the way people living in those communities see themselves, their place in a wider community that is supposed to be build on democratic values. Our judges agreed this is an important film and, at a time when it is vital that we hold our governments and officials to account, essential viewing.
Radio/Audio Award: The Wind Phone
Falling Tree Productions for Heart & Soul, BBC World Service
In 2011 a magnitude 9.0 earthquake struck off Japan’s northeastern shore, generating an enamours tsunami which devastated many of Japan’s coastal communities. The small fishing town of Otsuchi was among the worse affected – buildings were destroyed and fire ravaged what remained. Now from the rubble it has emerged as a place of pilgrimage for those grieving loved ones. In this beautifully crafted and sensitively rendered radio documentary, listeners accompany some of them as they visit the “wind phone” – essentially and old phone booth perched on a windy hill overlooking the Pacific where people come to “talk” to those they have lost.
Children’s Award: Now I Can Breathe
Amina tells the story of how she was sexually harassed and bullied over several years by other kids at her school and the work she’s doing now to educate teachers and her peers, and to stop sexual harassment. Part of CTVC’s multi-award winning free resources to support RE, PSHE and Citizenship education, our judges were impressed by Amina’s eloquence and determination and the confidence of the film-maker whose treatment never detracts from her story.
Radio Times Readers’ Award: Good Omens
BBC Studios, Blank Corporation, Narrative and Amazon Studios for Amazon
An overwhelming favourite among those who voted this year! Based on a fantasy fiction novel by Sir Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman, Good Omens is a six-part drama series, written by Neil Gaiman and directed by Douglas Mackinnon about a Demon and an Angel’s efforts to prevent the end of the world. Good Omens stars an ensemble cast, led by Michael Sheen and David Tennant, with Miranda Richardson, Michael McKean, Jack Whitehall, Jon Hamm and Frances McDormand among the many stars in supporting roles.Set in present day England, the series follows a fussy angel, Aziraphale (Michael Sheen) and a loose-living Demon, Crowley, (David Tenant), who’s shared fondness for life on earth sees them form an unlikely alliance to stop Armageddon. Aziraphale and Crowley team up to try and save the world from the anti-Christ – an unsuspecting 11-year-old boy, living in rural Oxfordshire. A great story that explores some very big ideas and some big themes without ever losing its sense of the absurd.
Read the Radio Times review of the series here.
Trustees’ Award: Stormzy
The Sandford St Martin Award recognises individuals, programmes or organisations who have made an outstanding contribution through broadcasting to the public understanding of religion. This year that award goes to Stormzy – not because he believes in God but because of how he has so eloquently and articulately translated his faith into his music and his activism. In doing so Stormzy’s stimulated a wide public conversation about ethics and community that’s involved thousands of people across cultural, generational and religious boundaries. Through his actions – whether it’s supporting Grenfell survivors, funding scholarships for black UK students to attend the University of Cambridge, or his work on Merky Books – he’s drawn on the faith which he says sustains him, to advocate for a better shared future.
Watch Stormzy’s video for Blinded By Your Grace here.
Runners Up
TV/Video: the Last Survivors
This landmark documentary gathers together the compelling and, in some cases, never-heard-before testimony from the last Holocaust survivors living in Britain today. This was a moving exploration of the long shadows cast by past trauma by a group of extraordinary witnesses, and a compelling argument for why we should never forget.
Journalism: The Hour of Lynching
Set in a remote village in India, this short film sheds light on a global problem: communities turning on those they identify as being ‘the other’. A startling insight that goes behind the headlines to examine how rightwing Hindu nationalists are using religion to justify the murder of Muslims.
Radio/Audio: This Is My Story Podcast: Ep 1, Allen Langham
United Christian Broadcasters for UCB Player App/Podcast Platforms
Former professional Rugby League player Allen Langham found himself in and out of prison after a string of violent offences. After an encounter with God, he not only found himself back in society, but also back on the Rugby pitch. The UCB podcast ‘This Is My Story’ shares stories of how faith changes people’s lives. From authors and musicians to former gang members and criminals, Ruth O’Reilly-Smith sits down for an extended conversation with people from all walks of life about the transformation they have experienced as a result of their relationship with God.
Children’s: Finding My Family: Holocaust – A Newsround Special
BBC Children’s In-House Productions for CBBC/iPlayer
“For you it’s history, but for me it’s life.” The words of Holocaust survivor Steven Frank, as he takes his teenage granddaughter Maggie on an emotional journey to learn about his Holocaust experiences. Never has this journey been more important, as the film sensitively shows its young audience the horrors of this time in history through the eyes of a teenage girl. They visit Amsterdam to learn about Steven’s happy family life there before the war, and what happened to Dutch Jews during Nazi occupation. Then, the pair travel to Terezin in the Czech Republic, where Steven was held as a child, to learn about the horrors of life inside the camps. Finally, the pair travel to Auschwitz to learn what happened to members of Steven’s family who didn’t survive. Placing stones at their place of rest, Steven tells Maggie “as soon as you start forgetting about what happened in the past, it will surely happen again.” The documentary has been shown in schools across the UK as part of their commemorations for Holocaust Memorial Day and remains available on the Newsround website so future viewers can witness what happened, and never forget.
