News for Journalists – Awards, Deaths, Robbery, Life Saver

In the PR World we have a ‘difficult to define’ relationship with journalists – we hate it when they don’t publish our puff pieces and love them to bits when they do.

In any event journalism as an industry is under threat and it is behove upon us as PR Professionals to support and promote the journalism industry upon which we rely more than we will admit.

So, MYPR does a weekly feature on journalists along with giving journalists the OPTION to promote their work via a FREE FEATURED JOURNALIST SUBMISSION on MyPR of their latest article – we are not asking the journalist to just post a few sentences or paragraphs but also to give a personal narrative about their article and why they wrote it.

That submission form is at the bottom of this article or can be found HERE.

In addition to the above MyPR also has a dedicated section where journalists can request the help of an expert.

These articles about journalists popped up this past week:

Journalism Awards:

Journalist Viktoria Roshchyna receives posthumous human rights award: Viktoria Roshchyna, a Ukrainian journalist who died in Russian captivity, was posthumously awarded the 2024 Homo Homini Human Rights Award by the Czech human rights organization People in Need on March 12.

Sevgil Musayeva, the chief editor of the Ukrainian media outlet Ukrainska Pravda, accepted the honor on Roshchyna’s behalf at a ceremony in Prague, activist Maksym Butkevych announced on social media. Roshchyna shares the award with Nigerian journalist Philip Obaji.

Roshchyna received the Homo Homini award for her “courage to tell the stories of Ukrainians in the Russian-occupied territories and for her long-term journalistic work dedicated to portraying issues threatening the democratic order of Ukraine, which she did not compromise on, even at the risk of her personal safety,” the executive board of People in Need said.

Tough Times Ahead:

Palestinian journalist in Gaza dies from injuries sustained in Israeli attack: The Forum of Palestinian Journalists announced Friday the death of Alaa Hashim, who died of injuries she previously sustained in an Israeli bombardment of Gaza City in the course of its genocidal war.

Hashim’s death brought the number of Palestinian journalists killed in Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7, 2023, to 206.

The NGO mourned Hashim and condemned the international silence and failure to protect Palestinian journalists…

Journalist sues after ‘beloved’ pet dog is hit by an estate agent’s car: A wine critic has accused a former actress of negligence after his pet dog was hit by an estate agent’s car in a case where costs could top £150,000.

Harry Eyres, a former wine columnist for The Spectator and theatre critic for The Times, has told a judge that his dog, Ebony, suffered serious spinal injuries after being run over by a car being driven by an employee of Dexters estate agents…

Driver fined for refusing blood test after fatal collision with journalist: The driver of the truck involved in a fatal collision in which a sports journalist died has been fined $1500 and had his licence suspended for 30 months after pleading guilty to refusing to do a blood test.

A doctor yelled at Herald Sun reporter Sam Landsberger to stop walking as a heavy truck was moving through a Richmond intersection on August 20, 2024, a court was told on Friday…

Journalists Under Threat:

Australian Journalist Robbed Live On Air While Reporting On Soaring Crime Rates: A live TV broadcast in Adelaide took an unexpected turn when a man stole equipment during a report on rising crime rates. Channel Seven reporter Hayden Nelson was reporting on crime statistics at shopping centres in the city for the morning program Sunrise.

While filming in Rundle Mall, a man approached the reporter and his cameraman, casually greeting them. Without anyone noticing, he then took one of the crew’s lights and walked away, continuing the theft unnoticed by the crew members at the time.

Explaining what happened, Hayden later said on air: “To give you an idea of just how brazen some of the crime is, this morning after our last live cross, someone came and took the light off our light stand…

The beauty and shame of Zimbabwe: Reporters Without Borders has just ranked Zimbabwe a shameful 116th out of 180 countries surveyed on the Global Press Freedom Index, stating that: “Extremely harsh laws are still in effect and when new laws have been adopted their provisions are just as draconian as those they replaced.”

It said the 2023 Patriot Act, which criminalised any attack on sovereignty and national interest, had threatened the work of journalists.

At the same time as the Reporters Without Borders account was released, Zimbabwean journalist Blessed Mhlanga was detained in police custody after broadcasting an interview with war veteran Mr Blessed Geza, who is challenging Emmerson Mnangagwa’s presidency.

Mhlanga was arrested on two counts of “transmission of data messages, inciting violence or damage to property”…

The White House press pool became a way to control journalists: The recently appointed White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, has begun her tenure combatively, aggressively defending the Trump administration’s policies and, at times, mimicking Donald Trump’s methods of dealing with the mainstream news media.

Faced recently with a legitimate question by an Associated Press (AP) reporter who challenged Trump’s introduction of tariffs against several countries, she accused the reporter of doubting her knowledge of economics. She then dismissed him, saying: “I now regret giving a question to the Associated Press.”

AP is one of the key media organisations reporting on the White House. The largest news agency in the US, its stories are carried by news groups around the world. But recently, AP was ejected from the “press pool” that covers White House business…

Journalist quits broadcaster after comparing French actions in Algeria to Nazi massacre: A prominent French journalist on Sunday announced he was stepping down from his role as an expert analyst for broadcaster RTL after provoking an uproar by comparing French actions during colonial rule in Algeria to a World War II massacre committed by Nazi forces in France.

Jean-Michel Aphatie, a veteran reporter and broadcaster, insisted that while he would not be returning to RTL he wholly stood by his comments made on the radio station in late February equating atrocities committed by France in Algeria with those of Nazi Germany in occupied France.

“I will not return to RTL. It is my decision,” the journalist wrote on the X, after he was suspended from air for a week by the radio station…

US journalist sues Indian government after losing his overseas citizenship: US journalist sues Indian government after losing his overseas citizenship

Raphael Satter had his OCI card taken away after publishing a story critical of an Indian businessman.

A US journalist has taken the Indian government to court after his Indian overseas citizenship was unilaterally cancelled, after the publication of a story critical of a prominent Indian businessman.

Raphael Satter, who covers cybersecurity for the Reuters news agency in the US, received a letter from India’s ministry of home affairs in early December 2023, accusing him of producing work that “maliciously” tarnished India’s reputation and informing him that his Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card had been cancelled…

Malaysian Journalist Charged in Court for Allegedly Taking Bribe: (Bloomberg) — A Malaysian journalist was charged in court for allegedly receiving a bribe in return for backing off an investigation into an alleged migrant worker trafficking syndicate.

B. Nantha Kumar, a reporter with local online news outlet Malaysiakini, was charged at the Sessions Court in Selangor state with receiving 20,000 ringgit ($4,500) in exchange for retracting and not uploading articles about a foreign workers cartel.

Kumar pleaded not guilty. If convicted, he faces a maximum of 20 years in prison and a fine of at least 100,000 ringgit, five times the value of the alleged bribe…

VOA Persian: Iranian American journalist ends hunger strike: Reza Valizadeh, a dual-citizen Iranian American journalist imprisoned in Iran, ended his hunger strike after six days on Thursday out of concern for his mother, who went on the hunger strike with him. Valizadeh said family members asked him to end the strike because his mother’s physical and mental condition had severely deteriorated, and he had developed motor impairment and a weakened physical condition…

Accolades for Journalists:

How a BBC journalist saved a woman who walked into the sea: A BBC Scotland journalist has received a Police Scotland bravery award after rescuing a woman from the sea in Orkney.

Linda Sinclair, who has also been recognised by the Royal Humane Society, recalls how the dramatic day unfolded after she went for a beach swim with her sister.

I knew something wasn’t right when the woman walking down the middle of the road refused to move aside, despite the noise of my car engine approaching.

By her demeanour, I also instinctively sensed that a polite toot of the horn was not the appropriate response.

At the time I was driving to Inganess Beach on the outskirts of Kirkwall.

I had discovered the bay early on in my three-month stint working at BBC Radio Orkney…

Telling stories of Eastern Cape’s marginalised inspires Gugwini: Every day presents new challenges in his job, says DA caucus digital content creator. Chumani Gugwini was always fascinated by storytelling while growing up, inspiring him to one day find his place in the media space as a digital content creator…

Former ESPN journalist Ley named Colin Jose Media winner: FRISCO, Texas – Bob Ley has been named the recipient of the 2025 Colin Jose Media Award, it was announced on Wednesday.

The award honors journalists whose careers have made significant long-term contributions to soccer in the United States.

The face of ESPN’s soccer coverage for decades, Ley will be honored May 3 at the National Soccer Hall of Fame Induction ceremony here. The ceremony also will feature the induction of the Hall of Fame’s 2025 Class: Mark Abbott, Chris Armas, Mary Harvey, Carli Lloyd and Nick Rimando…

Journalist Sophie Elmhirst wins book of the year at Nero Book Awards: A book that retells the true story of a couple who were shipwrecked in the 1970s and lived on a life raft for 118 days has won a prestigious £30,000 book prize.

The book, Maurice And Maralyn: An Extraordinary True Story Of Shipwreck, Survival And Love, written by journalist Sophie Elmhirst, has been named book of the year at the annual Nero Book Awards.

The Guardian long-reads journalist took home the overall winning title along with the prize money for her debut book, which recounts the couple’s story which saw them stranded in the middle of the Pacific Ocean after their boat was struck by a whale…

Announcing the winner of the inaugural Goldsmith Prize for Explanatory Reporting: The Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy is pleased to announce that The Washington Post’s Opinions series “Who is Government?” is the winner of the inaugural Goldsmith Prize for Explanatory Reporting. The prize will be awarded at the 2025 Goldsmith Awards ceremony on April 3 at the JFK Jr. Forum at Harvard Kennedy School.

“This new prize was created to honor journalism that does the hard work of explaining essential institutions: how does the government actually work, who are the players, what is the essence of serving the public,” said Shorenstein Director Nancy Gibbs. “The team at The Washington Post captured the extraordinary work of the ordinary people who commit to making our lives better, safer, freer. As budgets are slashed and entire departments dissolved, I can think of no better time to tell their stories.”

Seven writers — Michael Lewis, Casey Cep, Dave Eggers, John Lanchester, Geraldine Brooks, Sarah Vowell, and W. Kamau Bell — were “set loose on the federal bureaucracy” and given the same brief: find a story about public service…

Regional Press Awards winners announced: The Regional Press Awards were handed out at a ceremony on 12th March at Quaglino’s in central London. Organised by the Haymarket group the headline-sponsorship was by Openreach.

According to the organiser, the awards presentation and networking showcased the achievements of the regional press industry over the past 12 months.

The full list of winners and highly-commended entrants was as follows…

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