Head of news at Midwest Radio Teresa O’Malley is the Irish winner in the radio section of the 2009 European Journalism Awards.
Her documentary on former EU Commissioner Padraig Flynn will now go on to compete with 27 other EU states for the overall title, to be announced in October.
The radio programme entitled Padraig Flynn - a Force for Change in Europe was broadcast on Midwest Radio in early January of this year.
It was part of a highly acclaimed four part series called Mayo Abroad that looked at the impact of Mayo natives on the international stage.
Focusing on the Castlebar man’s impact as EU Commissioner for Social Affairs in the nineties, the programme outlined Padraig Flynn’s ambitions within that posting and his emphasis on employment for EU citizens.
The programme outlines how Mr Flynn used the significant budget of the EU’s Social Fund to provide money for re-training and education for a growing number of people unemployed at that time.
Mr Flynn was also a key player in the negotiations that secured billions of euro in funding for Ireland for over a decade through the Structural Funds and Ireland’s Status One designation in receiving funds under this significant source of finance for major infrastructural projects.
Teresa O’Malley has won numerous national awards for journalism including four ESB National Media Awards, a Connaught Gold/John Healy Award and a PPI award.
The series Mayo Abroad was co-produced by her colleague in the Midwest newsroom Liamy MacNally with technical assistance from Ronan Courrell.
It was commissioned by the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland under its Sound and Vision scheme.
Teresa, who lives in Castlebar, is a native of Foxford and daughter of Tommie and Mary O’Malley, Castlebar Road, Foxford.
She is head of news at Midwest Radio and travels across the county covering news stories as they break.
