Truth Without Borders: IJ4EU Awards Honor Cross-Border Journalism’s Impact

September 26, 2024 – General – 

At the 2024 UNCOVERED Conference in Athens, the Investigative Journalism for Europe (IJ4EU) Impact Awards celebrated the power of cross-border collaboration in exposing injustice and holding the powerful to account. Three groundbreaking investigations were each awarded €5,000 for their significant public impact, innovative reporting methods, and international reach.

One of the award-winning investigations, The Pylos Shipwreck: Reconstruction of a Catastrophe, meticulously uncovered the details of a 2023 migrant boat disaster off the Greek coast that claimed over 500 lives. Through forensic modeling, survivor interviews, and collaboration between outlets like Solomon, Forensics, The Guardian, and ARD, the project challenged official narratives and contributed to ongoing legal proceedings in Greece.

Story Killers, another honored investigation, was a massive global collaboration led by Forbidden Stories. Over 100 journalists from 30 media outlets exposed the murky world of “disinformation mercenaries” hired to silence reporters and spread false narratives. The project also paid tribute to journalists like India’s Gauri Lankesh, who was murdered for her reporting, highlighting the deadly consequences of truth-telling in hostile environments.

The third award went to The Border Graves Investigation, a haunting exposé by eight freelance journalists who located over 1,000 unmarked graves of migrants across 65 cemeteries in Europe. Using drone footage, photography, and even VR technology, the project humanized the victims of failed EU migration policies and brought attention to those who died seeking a better life but were buried without names.

An honorable mention was awarded to Suspicion Machines, a project by Lighthouse Reports that investigated discriminatory algorithmic surveillance systems used in European welfare systems.

Chaired by Maltese journalist Paul Caruana Galizia, the jury praised the winners for their courage, creativity, and commitment to public interest journalism. The awards, organized by the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) in partnership with the International Press Institute (IPI), underscored the necessity of cross-border investigative work in a fragmented and polarized media landscape.

These investigations are a testament to journalism’s enduring role as a global watchdog, cutting through borders to amplify truth, demand accountability, and give voice to the silenced.

Reference –

Cross-border journalism triumphs at IJ4EU Impact Awards 2024

Cross-border journalism triumphs at IJ4EU Impact Awards 2024 – ipi.media