Global News wins big at 2018 Jack Webster Awards

It was a big night for Global News at the Jack Webster Awards on Monday.

Global News won the award for Best Breaking News reporting for the death of Abbotsford police Const. John Davidson in November 2017.

Those honoured included Geoff Hastings, Aaron McArthur, Darryl Patton, Stephen Lyon, Keith Whitter, Monty Burt, Karl Avefjall, Simon Boniface and Luca Sgaetti.

Davidson, 53, had been a police officer for 24 years in Canada and the U.K. when he was killed in the line of duty. Oscar Arfmann has since been charged with first-degree murder in connection with Davidson’s death.

Global News also took home the prize for Excellence in Feature/Enterprise Reporting for Television for coverage of the B.C. government’s refusal to pay for the drug Soliris, which is used to treat atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome (aHUS), a disease that is characterized by renal failure (when the kidneys stop working), issues related to red blood cell counts, and vascular troubles. It costs around $750,000 a year.

The drug became a hot-button issue after 23-year-old Shantee Anaquod went public with her battle to seek coverage.

In November 2017, the B.C. government approved the cost of Soliris for Anaquod. Health minister Adrian Dix said a new committee of medical specialists would look at individual cases going forward for coverage.

Global News former assignment editor Clive Jackson was also recognized with the Jack Webster Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award.

Jackson began his career in the U.K. on Fleet Street, in the no-holds-barred world of London newspapers. It was there he developed his thirst for scoops and breaking news, a talent that he later brought to British Columbia.

After a brief stint as a bellboy in Los Angeles, Jackson landed a job with The Province newspaper, before transitioning to TV when he landed a job with the station then known as BCTV.

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