NZME celebrates success at 2025 Voyager Media Awards

New Zealand Media and Entertainment (NZME) is celebrating an outstanding performance at the 2025 Voyager Media Awards, claiming multiple top honours including the prestigious Voyager Newspaper of the Year award for the Herald on Sunday, which also won Weekly Newspaper of the Year.New Zealand Media and Entertainment (NZME) is celebrating an outstanding performance at the 2025 Voyager Media Awards, claiming multiple top honours including the prestigious Voyager Newspaper of the Year award for the Herald on Sunday, which also won Weekly Newspaper of the Year.

The annual Voyager Media Awards recognise excellence in New Zealand's news media across all platforms.

With four strong contenders in the Newspaper of the Year category, the Herald on Sunday took out the top spot with judges commenting on its reader impact, clean and modern design layout, and publication quality. It also won Weekly Newspaper of the Year for delivering a top-quality weekend read with punchy stories you want to read till the end.

NZME’s lifestyle, fashion and culture magazine VIVA took out the award for Best Newspaper Magazine.

Hawke's Bay Today continued its winning streak, taking out the Regional Newspaper of the Year award for the second consecutive year, reinforcing NZME's strength in regional journalism. The judges said Hawke's Bay Today continues to set the standard for regional newspapers with strong news and issues-based reporting, and its impressive coverage of the devastating impact of Cyclone Gabrielle one year on.

In individual categories, Michael Morrah won News Journalist of the Year - the judges describing him as an engaging storyteller who uses all the principles of excellent journalism to grab our attention and explain why we should care.

Bonnie Jansen was honoured as Best Up and Coming Journalist, with the judges commenting on the depth of her work and her unique ability to tell wider social stories through the lens of sport.

The prestigious Gordon McLauchlan Journalism Award went to Kim Knight, acknowledged as exemplifying the fine art of originality in lifestyle journalism.

NZME also celebrated success in other categories with the Philip Polkinghorne murder trial coverage earning NZME Best Coverage of a Major News Event, investigative project Whenua: Our land, our history winning Best Innovation in Digital Storytelling and Kaipara District Council votes to disestablish Māori ward taking Best Shortform Video.

Murray Kirkness, NZME editor-in-chief, says: "These awards are a direct reflection of the exceptional talent and dedication we're fortunate to have in our newsrooms across the country. We are committed to delivering high-quality, trusted journalism that makes a difference in our communities. I’m hugely proud of our team for the wins we’ve had tonight,” he says.

Matt Wilson, NZME Chief Operations Officer - Publishing, says: "Creating award-winning newspapers involves many teams across NZME - from our journalists and photographers to our printing, customer service and delivery networks. This recognition tonight reflects the awesome teamwork we have across NZME and reinforces the value we continue to deliver for our loyal readers and advertising partners."

Michael Boggs, CEO of NZME says: "NZME is committed to trusted, quality journalism, which these awards validate. Our continued success across print and digital platforms enables us to reach and inform 9 out of 10 New Zealanders daily - an achievement we're immensely proud of.

"I want to thank our dedicated teams for their extraordinary efforts, and to our valued advertisers and readers throughout New Zealand. Congratulations to all winners and nominees across the industry - tonight was a powerful reminder of journalism's vital role in our society," says Boggs.

ENDS