[ad_1]
New York, November 19, 2020 – In a tumultuous year marked by a global pandemic, social unrest, and tense political divisions, the overall message of tonight’s CPJ International Press Freedom Awards 2020 was simple: journalism matters. more than ever and solidarity has never been more important.
“Whether covering the pandemic or the protests, journalists around the world are under attack,” actress Meryl Streep said during the virtual event, which was hosted by NBC’s Lester Holt. “The very truth they are seeking to bring to us is under attack,” Streep said.
Mohammad Mosaed. “Despite intimidation and the constant threat of ending up in Tehran’s notorious Evin Prison, independent journalists have persisted in bringing us the truth,” Amanpour said. Mosaed was recently sentenced to more than four years in prison and banned from practicing journalism due to his critical reporting.
Dapo Olorunyomi, veteran Nigerian journalist and editor of the Premium Times newspaper.
Olorunyomi said of the award: “It reminds me in particular, and I believe many of my colleagues, the very important work that remains pending in the development of our media and the struggle to expand and give real consequences to our democracy.”
Svetlana Prokopyeva, a Russian correspondent for Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty who was convicted this year for “justifying terrorism.” Prokopyeva noted in her speech that in Russia, “journalism is often equated with crime. We slide into totalitarianism, again. Because if there is no freedom of expression, other freedoms are out of reach. “
Shahidul Alam. “The media are under threat throughout the world, energetically attacked. I think it is important for the world to recognize the role of the media, the value they have and the fact that those of us on the ground recognize that we are not alone and that we have the support, “Alam said in his speech.
Streep presented attorney Amal Clooney with the Gwen Ifill Press Freedom Award. During the night, Rappler editor and 2018 Gwen Ifill winner Maria Ressa interviewed Clooney.
“You can’t defend democracy without a prosperous and independent media,” Clooney said during the interview. In his acceptance speech, Clooney noted that “Americans voted for a new leader who can regain moral leadership on the world stage. They rejected the candidate who called the press ‘enemies of the people’ and shrugged off the murder of a Washington Post columnist. ” Separately this week, CPJ released a proposal to the incoming Biden administration on restoring America’s leadership in global press freedom.
The show featured a star-studded call to action from investigative journalist Ronan Farrow, political satire host Samantha Bee, CNBC’s Shepard Smith and actress Rosamund Pike, among other prominent journalists and advocates.
The awards were chaired by Patrick Gaspard, President of the Open Society Foundations. Alberto Ibargüen, president and CEO of the Knight Foundation, announced that Knight would match each donation up to $ 250,000.
“We are grateful for our dinner chair, Patrick Gaspard, and for all those who have contributed generously to CPJ and made this evening a success. It’s inspiring to see people in the United States and around the world come together to support press freedom, ”said CPJ Executive Director Joel Simon.
In an unprecedented show of solidarity, media outlets around the world broadcast the event, including sponsoring media partners ABC News, Bloomberg, CBS News, HuffPost, NBC News, and Yahoo! News and Supporting Media Partners Drik Picture Library in Bangladesh, Nation Media Group in Kenya, The Los Angeles Times and PBS NewsHour in the US, Premium Times in Nigeria, Rappler in the Philippines, RTÉ in Ireland and RFE / RL , which broadcasts across Europe.
The full event, including the recipient’s stories and acceptance speeches, can be viewed at ipfa2020.org. A press kit is available for download and interviews with the media can be arranged by sending an email [email protected]
