The best journalists of 2018 were awarded at the Annual Gala of the Press Club held in Chisinau on December 6. Nine awards in six categories were handed over in the 24th edition of the event. The categories were: TV and radio programs, photography, investigation, longread, TV feature, and print media. There were also offered six special prizes, IPN reports.
Natalia Sergeev of Radio Free Europe and Marina Ciobanu and Viorica Tataru of “Ziarul de Gardă” paper were awarded in the TV and radio journalism category. The prize for high-quality photo-journalism went to Andrei Mardari of Moldpres News Agency and Nadejda Roșcovanu of “Jurnal de Chisinau” paper. The awards in the longread category were given to Polina Cupcea of the website “Oameni și Kilometri” and the editorial office “NewsMaker”.
The investigation “Oligarch’s Paradise” broadcast in video format by RISE Moldova was named the investigation of the year. This was produced by journalists Nicolae Kushkevich, Liuba Shevchuk and Olga Ceaglei. Tatiana Mitrofan of the paper “Observatorul de Nord” won the print media award, while Stela Dănilă of TVR Moldova – the TV feature award for the campaign “Different, but similar”.
Six special prizes were awarded in the Gala. The TV channel TV8 was named the evolution of the year. Iurie Rotaru of the newspaper “SP” of Bălț became the hope of the year. Alina Andronache’s “Vlog of a Feminist Mother” was named the best vlog. The excellence prize went to Tudor Yashchenko of the paper “Cuvântul”.
The portal Nokta.md was awarded for the best coverage of realities in Moldova’s regions by the local press. The campaign “Union Generation” staged by TVR Moldova was named the best media project.
The National Journalistic Ethics and Professional Deontology Award of the Press Council this year went to the paper “SP” of Bălți.
Nadine Gogu, director of the Independent Journalism Center, said the jury this year had a lot of work to do as there were a lot of good and very good materials, especially in some of the categories. “This shows we have high-quality journalism even if we face particular problems in some of the situations,” she stated, voicing hope that more journalists will apply to the contest next year, especially because it will be the 25th anniversary of the foundation of the Gala.
The Gala was organized by the Independent Journalism Center, the Press Club of Chisinau and the Committee for the Freedom of the Press. The Journalists of the Year rankings have been compiled annually since 1995, as part of the Press Club of Chisinau. The major goal of the event is to support and encourage journalists to create high-quality products in accordance with the intentional professional standards.
