Miami (July 1, 2009)—The Inter American Press Association (IAPA) today announced the winners of the awards that the organization gives each year to honor journalists and newspapers throughout the Americas for their contributions to excellence in journalism and the defense of freedom of expression. The information was provided by Fabricio Altamirano, of the San Salvador, El Salvador, newspaper El Diario de Hoy, chairman of the IAPA’s Awards Committee.
The Committee elected the winners in 11 categories, with the awards to be presented during the IAPA 65th General Assembly to be held at the Hilton Hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, November 6-10. The awards consist of $2,000 in cash, plaques and diplomas.
“The quality of the entries reflects the high level of journalism being practiced in Latin America and North America,” Altamirano said. “The participation has been outstanding, a sign of the interest of professional journalists in the contest.”
Following are the categories and the names of the winners and those receiving honorable mention:
1. IAPA Pedro Joaquín Chamorro Award Inter-American Relations Category. Sponsored by La Prensa, Managua, Nicaragua.
Hugo Alconada Mon, of La Nación, Buenos Aires, Argentina, for the series “Los secretos de la valija” (The Secrets of the Suitcase), which describes in great detail the much-talked-about “Suitcase Hit,” presenting its context and political implications. It is noteworthy for its large number of soruces used and the investigative work in several countries.
Also, the adjudication panel recommended granting an honorable mention to Rosa Jacqueline Torres, Marieta Campaña Villacís and Christian Zurita Ron of the Diario Expreso, of Guayaquil, Ecuador, for their work “Seis meses del ataque” (Six Months Since the Attack).
2. IAPA Award Human Rights and Service to the Community Category. Sponsored by Panamá-América,Panama City, Panama; El Comercio, Lima, Peru; Organización Publicitaria, S.A., San Pedro Sula, Honduras, and La Nación, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Solange dos Anjos Azevedo of Revista Epoca, Brazil, for the work “Mamas e Down” (Moms and Down Syndrome), which presents in an educational and readable way the limitations of people suffering from Down Syndrome and their battle to receive equal treatment.
Also, the adjudication panel recommended granting an honorable mention to Sibila Diana Camps of Clarín, Buenos Aires, Argentina, for her series on prostitution.
3. IAPA Newspaper in Education Award. Sponsored by Novedades de Quintana Roo, Mexico and El Diario de Hoy, San Salvador, El Salvador.
The Newsroom of El Carabobeño, Venezuela, for its Press School Program, whose objective is to encourage reading and writing through daily use of the newspaper. Its various components include a children’s supplement, guided visits, donations of newspapers, refresher courses for teachers, a page devoted to parents and teachers, among others.
4. IAPA Opinión Award. Sponsored by El Mercurio, Santiago, Chile
Tod Robberson of The Dallas Morning News, Texas, for his op-ed pieces on Latin America, characterized by their topicality, brilliance and analytical depth.
Also, the adjudication panel recommended granting an honorable mention to Robert Rivard of the San Antonio Express-News, Texas, for his opinion columns about issues concerning the border situation and neighboring Mexico.
5. IAPA News Coverage Award. Sponsored by El Nacional, Caracas, Venezuela, and O Estado de S. Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
Alberto Salcedo of SOHO, Colombia, for his work “Un país de mutilados” (A Country of Disabled Persons), which describes in a highly literate style the heartrending life stories of those maimed by anti-personnel mines, a drama that affects many Colombians.
6. IAPA In-Depth Reporting Award. Sponsored by The Miami Herald, Miami, Florida
Itamar Melo, Maneol Soares and Patricia Rocha of Jornal Zero Hora, Brazil, for the series “La Epidemia del Crack” (The Crack Epidemic), which presents the human drama, how this phenomenon is spreading among the young and the effects on health, and exposes the structure of the illicit drug trade.
7. IAPA Features Award. Sponsored by El Comercio, Quito, Ecuador, and McClatchy Newspapers,Sacramento, California
Zoraida Gallegos Valle of Expreso, Mexico, for her series of features titled “Huellas imborrables” (Indelible Fingerprints), on the issue of the use of drugs and its consequences.
Also, the adjudication panel recommended granting an honorable mention to Teresa Carl of The Associated Press, Mexico, for her work “Mexico, Life with the Fence.”
8. IAPA Photography Award. Sponsored by The Washington Post Company, Washington, DC, and ABC Color, Asunción, Paraguay
Patrick Farell of The Miami Herald, Miami, Florida, for his black-and-white photographic report “A People in Despair: Haiti’s Year Without Mercy,” which portrays the ongoing tragedy of a country, also beset by the ravages of Hurricane Ike.
9. IAPA Cartoons Award. Sponsored by El Tiempo, Bogotá, Colombia
Alonso Núñez Rebaza of El Comercio, Lima, Peru, for his caricature of George W. Bush. The work manages to capture the difficult times that the former U.S. president had to face.
10. IAPA Infographics Award. Sponsored by Clarín, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Alejandro Rojas Cardozo together with Juan Pablo Noriega, Carlos Morales, Alejandro Urueña, Beiman Pinilla of El Tiempo, Bogotá, Colombia, for their infographic “Colombia, el país con más víctimas por minas” (Colombia, the Country with Most Mining Accident Victims), which with a well-chosen combination of information, photos, videos and graphics brilliantly portrays the tragedy of hundreds of victims.
Also, the adjudication panel recommended granting an honorable mention to Alfredo Oshiro Fukuhara, Carmen Gallegos, Sergio Fernández, Roxana Loarte, Rems Miranda, Carlos Ramírez and Mario Mejía of El Comercio, Lima, Peru, for their work “Infografia interactiva: el megajuicio a Alberto Fujimori” (Interactive Infographics: The Super Trial of Alberto Fujimori).
11. IAPA News Coverage Online Award. Sponsored by The Wall Street Journal, New York.
Maricella Arias Morales, Diego Peralta Murias, César Torres Aguirre, Ricardo Reátegui Marchesi, Jorge Luis González Collantes, José Kusunoki Gutiérrez of El Comercio, Lima, Peru, for their “Especial multimedia sobre Cerro de Pasco” (Multimedia Special on Cerro de Pasco), which presents a well-rounded portrayal of the exodus from the world’s highest mining city, which has shocked the country.
IAPA Grand Prize for Press Freedom
Al Neuharth
Allen H. Neuharth is one of the most distinguished figures in the history of journalism in the United States.He began his career in journalism at the age of 11 in Alpeña, South Dakota, delivering newspapers and later rose to editor of his school newspaper.
After the Second World War, during which he served in France, Germany and the Philippines, Neuharth graduated from the University of South Dakota, where he was editor of “The Volante” and where he has established the Neuharth Media Center.
He began his association with the IAPA in the 1960s, when he was Assistant Managing Editor of The Miami Herald, Miami, Florida. He later held a number of positions in the Knight Ridder newspaper chain and then moved to Gannett, where in 1982 he developed USA Today, a new print newspaper model of worldwide fame and with the highest circulation in the United States. Neuharth retired in 1989 as chairman of the Board of Directors of Gannett.
He was also one of the founders of The Freedom Forum, an organization dedicated to “freedom of the press, of expression and of the spirit” for all. This organization operates the Newseum in Washington, D.C., an interactive journalism museum, and the First Amendment Center.
Neuharth resides in Cocoa Beach, Florida, with his wife, Dr. Rachel Fornes.
The IAPA is delighted to award Allen H. Neuharth the IAPA Grande Prize for Press Freedom, for an entire life devoted to the defense of the values of journalism and of freedom of expression in the world.
Awards Committee Chairman:
Fabricio Altamirano, El Diario de Hoy, San Salvador, El Salvador
Vice Chairman:
Cristina Aby-Azar, The Wall Street Journal, New Jersey, NJ
Members:
Carlos Besanson, Diario del Viajero, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Bruce Brugmann, San Francisco Bay Guardian, San Francisco, California
Wilfredo Cancio, El Nuevo Herald, Miami, Florida
Martín Etchevers, Olé, Buenos Aires, Argentina
André Jungblut, Gazeta do Sul, Santa Cruz do Sul, Brazil
Francisco Montes, Diario de Cuyo, San Juan, Argentina
José Luis Parra, El Mercurio, Santiago, Chile
Jorge Andrés Saieh, La Tercera, Santiago, Chile
Carlos Salinas, El Diario de Coahuila, Saltillo, Coahuila, Mexico
Juan Luis Sommers, Revista COSAS, Santiago, Chile
Gilberto Urdaneta, El Regional de Zulia, Ciudad Ojeda, Venezuela
Gabriela Vivanco, Diario La Hora, Quito, Ecuador
Gustavo Yocca, El Liberal, Santiago del Estero, Argentina
