KENYA'S CNN JOURNALIST WINNERS 2010

Winners in the individual competition categories are:

MOHAMED AMIN PHOTOGRAPHIC AWARD
Winner: Boniface Mwangi, Freelance for The Star, Kenya
Title: Body of work ‘The Boy Child in Sub Saharan Africa’
Judge’s Citation: The set of pictures bring us directly to the life of the African child. It is a piece of Artwork achieved by the quality of the photos, the angles of contrasts between colourful light and shadows, which suddenly capture a particular moment of Africa’s future. To get this result, the photographer has undertaken a patient search of such magic moments in life, where he could find some light next to the face of a particular child with a particular secret in his life revealed by the camera. These particular pictures tell us what cannot be said by any written article: despite the uncertainty towards the future, African children are forging their self-protection and safety, so they are clever in search of a light in the social darkness.

RADIO GENERAL NEWS AWARD
Winner: Kassim Mohamed, Star FM, Kenya
Title: I am Married to a Pirate
Judge’s Citation: “Kassim Mohamed escorts us into their world by escorting the listener into Puntland, Somalia, and the homes of two pirates. They’re not home, so he interviews their wives. The first wife shows listeners her and her husband’s twin Prado’s – a fancy sports utility vehicle – he sits on their luxurious couches and is shown the family AK-47 which is used to protect the ill-gotten gains. It’s a fascinating insider account.

TELEVISION - GENERAL NEWS – NEWS BULLETIN AWARD
Winner: Roseline Wangui, NTV Kenya; and Charles Kariuki, World Vision Kenya for NTV
Title: Undying Quest for Education
Judge’s Citation: The story is balanced and comprehensive. It is a compelling piece of journalism, a simple story told in such a gripping manner.

ECONOMICS & BUSINESS AWARD
Winner: Kaara Wainaina and Francis Mugo Mwangi, NTV Nation Broadcasting Division, Kenya
Title: Granny’s Bank
Judge’s Citation: The journalist took what appears to be a simple story and painted a beautiful picture. He told the story of women’s friendship and also highlighted the business aspects, without labouring the point. This story shows business and finance.

CNN AFRICAN JOURNALIST LIST IS OUT

Finalists in the prestigious CNN MultiChoice African Journalist 2010 Competition were announced Thursday by Joel Kibazo, Chair of the independent judging panel. The competition is now in its 15th year.

This year the competition received entries from 975 journalists from 40 countries throughout the continent, including French and Portuguese speaking Africa.

There are 27 finalists from 15 countries:

* Halima Abdallah Kisule, East African, Uganda
* Kofi Akpabli, freelance for Daily Graphic, Ghana
* Njaka Andriamahery, TV Plus, Madagascar
* Pelu Awofeso, freelance for NEXT on Sunday, Nigeria
* Najlae Benmbarek, 2M TV, Maroc
* Teresa Chirwa, Zodiak Broadcasting Station, Malawi
* DispatchOnline Team, Daily Dispatch, South Africa
* Mustafa Haji Abdinur, co-founder SIMBA Radio, Somalia
* Thanduxolo Jika, Daily Dispatch, South Africa
* Zipporah Karani, KTN, Kenya
* Charles Kariuki, World Vision Kenya for NTV
* Alexandre Lebel Ilboudo, Le Patriote, Côte d’Ivoire
* Lucas Ledwaba, DRUM, South Africa
* Tsitsi Matope, Public Eye, Lesotho
* Emmanuel Mayah, Daily Sun, Nigeria
* Kassim Mohamed, Star FM, Kenya
* Oarabile Mosikare, Botswana for Mail & Guardian, South Africa
* Francis Mugo Mwangi, freelance for NTV, Kenya
* Boniface Mwangi, freelance for The Star, Kenya

* Rose Ramsay, eNews, South Africa
* Sam Rogers, e.tv, South Africa
* Sergio José Sitoe, Rede de Comuniação Miramar, Moçambique
* Leon Ssenyange, NTV, Uganda
* Lamia Tagzout, El Watan, Algérie
* Sebastião Vemba, Novo Jornal, Angola
* Kaara Wainaina, NTV, Kenya
* Roseline Wangui, NTV, Kenya

This year the recipient of the Free Press Africa Award is Mustafa Haji Abdinur, co-founder of SIMBA Radio in Mogadishu and founder of Somali Media for Peace and Development (SOMEPED). He is awarded this prize for his work in Somalia including the ‘Peace Journalism’ initiative which he launched with the help of fellow Somali journalists. The Award is also in recognition of all the journalists in Somalia who have put their lives at risk in telling the story.
There are nine journalists who died during 2009 whilst fulfilling their professional duties:
Abdulkhafar Abdulkadir Hasan, freelance
Mohamed Amin Adan Abdulle, Radio Shabelle
Hassan Zubeyr Haji Hassan, Al-Arabiya
Mohamud Mohamed Yusuf, Radio IQK
Mukhtar Mohamed Hirabe, Radio Shabelle
Nur Muse Hussein, Radio IQK
Abdirisak Mohamed Warsame, Radio Shabelle
Said Tahlil Ahmed, HornAfrik
Hassan Mayow Hassan, Radio Shabelle

The winners of the competition will be announced at an Award Ceremony and Gala Evening in Kampala, Uganda on Saturday 29th May 2010.

The hosts for the evening will be Isha Sesay, presenter of CNN International’s weekly programme ‘Inside Africa’ and Dr Ronnie Mich Egwang, a well-known Ugandan presenter.


The independent judging panel, chaired by Joel Kibazo, journalist and media consultant, includes: Ikechukwu Amaechi, Editor, Daily Independent, Nigeria; Jean-Paul Gérouard, Deputy Editor-in-Chief, France 3 TV; Ferial Haffajee, Editor-in-Chief, City Press, South Africa; Arlindo Lopes, Secretary General, Southern African Broadcasting Association; José Luís Mendonça, Press Counsellor, Angolan Permanent Delegation to UNESCO; Zipporah Musau, Managing Editor, Magazines, The Standard Group Ltd, Kenya; Kim Norgaard, CNN Bureau Chief, South Africa.

The prestigious sponsors include: Coca-Cola Africa; Ecobank, IPP Media, Tanzania; Kampala Serena Hotel; Merck Sharp & Dohme (MSD); NN24 Nigeria; Research In Motion (RIM), the company behind the BlackBerry solution; Safebond Africa Ltd and A24 Media.

ALLAN NAMU MIGHT JUST WIN

The MultiChoice CNN Awards are scheduled for this Saturday July 18. Kenya’s Allan Namu is greatly tipped to emerge as the overall winner this year…
This year the competition received entries from 836 journalists from 38 countries throughout the continent, including French and Portuguese speaking Africa.

The CNN African Journalist of the Year Award was founded in 1995 by Edward Boateng (formerly African Regional Director for Turner Broadcasting System Inc., CNN’s parent company) and the late Mohamed Amin, to recognise and encourage excellence in journalism throughout Africa.

Photographer Boniface Mwangi banned by Facebook

The first Kenyan photojournalist to win the CNN Multichoice Journalist Award has been banned by social networking site Facebook. Boniface Mwangi who won the CNN Africa Photojournalist of the Year 2008 is starting up a new Facebook profile after his was deleted last week due to his radical status updates.
Commenting on the issue he said, “I was removed from Facebook due to controversial updates calling for political change and the youth to stop hero worshiping tribal leaders who have messed up our country.” One of his last comments before his profile was deleted was “Kenyans elect criminals to parliament all you need is money to get elected.” He had over 1,500 friends.
Boniface is known for his crusade against tribal politics. “I see myself as a visual artist using photography as the vehicle for social change in my country, which has experienced a lot of impunity, the latest manifestation being 2007 December’s political convulsions that left over 1,000 dead and half a million displaced.”
Boniface’s post poll chaos photos have been published in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Sunday Times, International Herald Tribune and BBC Focus on Africa Magazine among other publications. Facebook has meanwhile declined to take down several Holocaust denial sites known for their anti- Semitic statements.

KTN Dominates the CNN MultiChoice Awards

Finalists in the prestigious CNN MultiChoice African Journalist 2009 Competition were announced on Tuesday by Azubuike Ishiekwene, Chair of the independent judging panel. The competition is now in its 14th year.
On the list are three KTN journalist; John-Allan Namu, James Moturi Mogaka and John Benson Mwangi. Others are Sammy Muraya of Metro FM, Boniface Mwangi of Expression Today and K24’s Violet Otindo.
The winners of the competition will be announced at an Award Ceremony and Gala Evening at The International Convention
Centre, Durban, South Africa on Saturday 18th July.


Isha Sesay

The hosts for the evening will be Isha Sesay, presenter of CNN weekly programme ‘Inside Africa’, joined on stage by South African eNews Channel presenter Macfarlane Molele.
This year the recipient of the Free Press Africa Award is Nicaise Kibel’bel Oka, of Les Coulisses in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He is awarded this prize, for his work in the DRC, and also in recognition of all the journalists in the DRC who have put their lives at risk in telling the story. There are three journalists in particular that we would like to mention who were murdered fulfilling their professional duties:
Pascal Kabungulu (killed 31st July 2005)
Serge Maheshe (killed 13th June, 2007)
Didace Namujimbo (killed 23rd November 2008)