Council of Europe Honors Journalists Highlighting Roma and Traveller Communities
The Council of Europe has announced the winners of the second edition of its Journalism Excellence Awards, dedicated to reportage on Roma and Traveller communities. This year’s honorees, hailing from Hungary, Greece, Czechia, Slovenia, and Ukraine, were commended for media contributions that challenge stigma and humanize marginalized voices without bias.
Among the laureates: the Photojournalism Award went to Tamás Márkos for “As If They Were Smiling”, a multimedia portrayal of a Roma family’s everyday life and agricultural endeavors. The Investigative Journalism Award was given to Vasileios Katsaras for documenting living conditions of Roma communities in Greece’s second-largest city. Simona Janíková received the Best Interview Award for her pivotal conversation with Roma activist Miroslav Klempar on school segregation in Czechia. The Young Journalist Award was awarded to Špela Ferlin for her reporting from Slovakia’s Lunik IX, bringing to light systemic difficulties faced by Roma residents. The Special Jury Award for Ukrainian Roma stories went to Mykola Homanyuk, who explored how media coverage has impacted portrayals of Roma and Traveller communities in Ukraine.
Emphasizing the importance of ethical journalism in contemporary society, Hallvard Gorseth, Council of Europe Director of Equal Rights and Dignity, remarked:
“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.”
More information about the awards can be found on the Council of Europe website: https://www.coe.int/en/web/portal/-/winners-of-council-of-europe-s-journalism-excellence-award-for-reporting-on-roma-and-travellers-announced
