Central Coast local and father of four Ryan Sheridan has won a prestigious Walkley Award for video journalism for two ABC Four Corners television reports, ‘Despair and Defiance’ and ‘Feral’.
The Walkleys are Australia’s top journalism awards, now in their 67th year, and are designed to celebrate high-quality journalism across a range of platforms and specialty fields.
The show Despair and Defiance focussed on the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Sheridan was sent to Kyiv early on in the conflict by the ABC to cover the story on the ground.
“We were sent to Ukraine at the start of the invasion and were there as the evacuation of Kyiv began,” he said.
“We spent about a week there, experiencing shelling from the north, before moving on to Odesa.
“It seemed like it was inevitable the Russians would take over, but they didn’t in the end.”
The second cited show in the awards announcement was ‘Feral‘ a report that covered the ongoing situation of wild horses or brumbies in the Australian Alps.
“That one was all about whether the brumbies should be removed or allowed to stay in Kosciusko and we tried to present both sides of the story,” Sheridan said.
The cream of Australian journalism attended the awards held at Sydney’s International Convention Centre.
Sheridan was joined by his wife, local ABC reporter Emma Simkin, who has supported Ryan in his pursuits.
“He worked in Beirut for two years for CNN where he covered the rise of ISIS,” Simkin said.
“I stayed here with the four kids, but he knew if he worked there it would open the doors to Four Corners and ultimately a potential Walkley. He had a plan.”
Sheridan said he had always hoped to work on Four Corners.
“I always wanted to end up there and when I did it was a dream come true,” he said.
“It was a massive thrill to win the award for work I did at Four Corners.”
Sheridan said the family’s busy lives presented some challenges.
“We have to juggle things; we have four kids and it’s hard to make time for everything,” he said.
“I’ve always been on the road a lot but when I’m home I try to make sure I’m 100 per cent present and give as much to the family as I can.”
The awards started back in 1956, when the Australian Journalists Association (AJA) partnered with William Gaston Walkley, the Managing Director of Ampol Petroleum, to launch the country’s first national press awards.
Official Award information
WALKLEY AWARDS 2022
TELEVISION/VIDEO: CAMERAWORK
Ryan Sheridan, ABC Four Corners, “Despair and Defiance” and “Feral”
Both episodes can view on ABC iView.
David Abrahams & Terry Collins