Top honour for The AJN
A CONTROVERSIAL page 3 AJN editorial urging Australian rabbis to come forward and reveal precisely what they knew regarding historic allegations of child abuse within the community was named best editorial/commentary at the NSW Premier’s Multicultural Media Awards last Thursday night.
Though applauded by child abuse activists, the March 8, 2013, piece by AJN national editor Zeddy Lawrence titled “Enough is enough” sparked ire among the rabbinate.
Lamenting the constant allegations of abuse and cover-ups, the editorial stated, “The community is awash with gossip, innuendo and rumour, people who have heard things, people who know the facts, the names, the details.
Urging spiritual leaders to “come clean” about what they knew, rather than “merely reacting to the latest revelation”, it concluded, “If our rabbinate is to earn our respect, if our rabbinate is to regain our faith, if it is to be more than simply fodder fuelling tabloid tittle-tattle, if our rabbinate is to move forwards, our rabbis must own up to their past.”
Receiving the award from NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell, Lawrence dedicated the honour to the victims of child abuse, adding that it was the role of a community newspaper to take up the baton on behalf of members of the community who felt aggrieved, and to hold the community’s leadership to account.
An AJN article by Joshua Levi, which revealed that victims of abuse may have been paid hush money so as not to report the crimes committed against them, was a finalist in the category for best investigative story.
Among the other winners on the night was David Ossip, who received the award for best article on multiculturalism for the article “A Nation of Tribes?”, which appeared in Beyond the Bridge, a publication for the North Shore Jewish community.
O’Farrell said, “The multicultural media is an invaluable resource to our community, and tonight’s winners reflect the professionalism and dedication of those who work in the industry.”
AJN STAFF
NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell with AJN national editor Zeddy Lawrence .
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