Czech Radio´s Studio ‘39 project receives Czech/German Journalism Award

Studio '39 connected a unique seven-hour live broadcast of a reconstruction of the events with period recordings and interviews with historians. According to the panel of judges, it brought the past to the present and thus represents a daring new format on the popular radio waves. “Studio '39 is an exceptional project by Czech Radio commemorating historical events that we should not forget. Congratulations to the people behind it and to everyone who contributed to the preparation and broadcast,” stated the General Director of Czech Radio, René Zavoral.

The project from Czech Radio’s station Radiožurnál returned listeners to the past on Friday, March 15^th. The special broadcast began at 4 a.m. and lasted until 11 a.m. Reporters described the events from key sites of the events of that era in real time.

“Eighty years have passed from the tragic events of 1939. Eyewitnesses are leaving us and for most young people the Second World War is the distant past. That’s why we went with Studio '39 to the Main Train Station, in order to offer it to people who do not listen to radio. We really appreciate that in addition to them, the professional judges of the Czech/German Journalism Awards also recognised the project,” stated the Editor-in-Chief of Czech Radio’s station Radiožurnál, Ondřej Suchan.

The Czech/German Journalism Awards are announced once a year in three categories: text, audio and multimedia including TV and they are awarded to the best Czech and German contributions in the given categories. The Special Milena Jesenská Award is given to a Czech or German contribution. The organisers of the awards want to recognise journalists that are going against the trend of fast, superficial reporting and thus are contributing to a better mutual understanding.