Czech Radio Scores a Double Win at the Czech-German Journalism Awards 2022
On the evening of 11 November, the Czech-German Future Fund presented the Czech-German Journalism Awards 2022 in the German city of Bamberg, northern Bavaria. Out of 73 entries from both countries, nine Czech and German authors received awards in the categories of text, audio and multimedia.
The Czech prize in the audio category went to Štěpán Vizi and Filip Rambousek for the first Czech-German climate podcast Karbon (Carbon), specifically for the episode “Losing Ground: How Agriculture is Transforming the Climate and Our Landscape”, which was broadcast by Radio Prague International.
In the episode, the authors discuss the relationship between agriculture and the environment together with experts from both the German and Czech sides. “When dealing with two of today's most important issues, such as climate and energy, and two neighboring countries as strongly interconnected as the Czech Republic and Germany, it is extremely important to make their respective approaches known to the other side, so that there is no mutual misunderstanding. The Czech-German climate podcast Karbon by Štěpán Vizi and Filip Rambousek does just that. As the first bilingual audio project of its kind in the Czech Republic, it’s literally a groundbreaking feat,” explained Czech Radio’s Filip Nerad on behalf of the jury.
The Milena Jesenská Special Prize went to Magdalena Fajtová for her programme Zaostřeno (In Focus), in which she takes listeners along as she traces the fate of her great-grandfather Jan Adensam, a soldier in the German army who committed suicide in 1943 somewhere in the former Yugoslavia. The report is available for listening on the website of Czech Radio Plus.
“The search for a great-grandfather's fate intertwines several themes: firstly, the question of nationality, how vague it is when people – specifically in the borderlands – do not attach any importance to it and grow up bilingual. Then there is the question of how belonging is actually determined and what consequences it has – being trapped in systems and within social pressures, losing one's home and dignity as a result of a devastating war, being expelled and later regaining Czech citizenship. And finally there is the question of taking personal responsibility for one's own actions. The author doesn't unnecessarily overwhelm the listener facts and retains an openness in the story, leaving the evaluation to us, the listeners,” said Bogna Koreng from MDR Radio on behalf of the jury.
The Czech-German Journalism Prize is awarded once a year across three distinct categories – text, audio and multimedia, which includes TV – to the best Czech and the best German entry in each category. The organizers of the award want to recognize journalists who go beyond standard reporting to find and explore topics, people and stories that bring the neighboring country and people closer to their listeners.
In addition, the Milena Jesenská Special Prize is awarded to topical pieces dealing with civic courage, understanding and tolerance.