The Council of Europe held the second edition of the Journalism Excellence Awards, which honour and promote media contributions that avoid stigma faced by Roma and Travellers – and impartially capture their human stories. This year’s winners come from Hungary, Greece, Czechia, Slovenia and Ukraine.
The ceremony held yesterday evening at the Council of Europe awarded five winners in the following categories:
- Award for Photojournalism
Tamás MÁRKOS for his "As If They Were Smiling". The photo material within the multimedia project documents the daily life of a Roma family and their agricultural entrepreneurship.
- Award for Investigative Journalism
Vasileios KATSARAS, who filmed the stories and the conditions of the local Roma residents in the second largest city in Greece.
- Best Interview Award
Simona JANÍKOVÁ, who presented the insights of Roma activist, Miroslav KLEMPAR, shedding light on school segregation in Czechia. Her work contributed to political change.
- The Young Journalist Award
Špela FERLIN, whose in-depth reporting from Slovakia’s Lunik IX area gave voice to the structural challenges Roma face daily.
- The Special Jury Award for Ukrainian Roma stories
The Jury also rewarded Mykola HOMANYUK with the Special Jury Award for Ukrainian Roma stories for examining the impact of a stolen tank’s media coverage on Ukrainian portrayal of Roma and Travellers.
“More than ever, quality journalism remains essential to defend democracy, to build and keep trust in media and to perform its key function of imparting information that is accurate and high-quality, abiding journalistic standards.” said Hallvard Gorseth, Council of Europe Director of Equal Rights and Dignity.
