The Lillehammer organizing committee will also present The Global Shining Light Award 2008, hoping this award will become a permanent fixture at future GIJ conferences.

 

 

Each year dozens of journalists and media workers are killed - and hundreds more are

attacked, imprisoned or threatened - just for just doing their job. Many of these

violations of free expression occur in developing or emerging countries, and quite often during military conflicts. There are a number of international awards recognizing such attacks on freedom of expression.

 

However, another clear trend emerges in analyses of global attacks on reporters and the media. More and more journalists are being killed, and media outlets attacked, because they are carrying out important efforts in investigative journalism, exposing

uncomfortable truths, shining light on systemic corruption, and providing

accountability in societies yearning for democracy and development. We are continuously reminded of the rising threat to investigative journalism around the world. The Lillehammer conference and the Global Investigative Journalism network want to recognize and celebrate these courageous investigative journalists and their work.

 

 

The journalist, journalism team and/or media outlet provided independent, investigative reporting, which was broadcast or published between January 1, 2007 and December 31, 2007, and which:

 

• Originated in and affected a developing or emerging country

• Was of an investigative nature

• Uncovered an issue, a wrong-doing and/or a system of corruption which gravely

affected the common good, and 

• Did so in the face of arrest, imprisonment, violence against them and their

families, and/or threats and intimidation

 

 

 

Nominations for this award may be made by independent Investigative journalism

organizations, associations of journalists, independent media outlets, or a fellow

investigative journalist. 

 

 

• A nomination letter listing the journalist’s name (or names of team members), and

name of his/her media organization with address, telephone number, fax and email. 

• The letter should provide a brief summary of the entry topic, explaining the

importance of the story, the challenges faced in reporting it, and the impact it made upon its broadcast or publication. 

• One English-translated copy of the published entry or one copy of the broadcast material with an English-translated copy of the script

 

Entries must be received no later than June 15^th 2008. Entries (articles, tv/radio) can also be sent on CD-ROM/DVD.

 

Entries should be sent to: Bibiana Dahle Piene, c/o The Norwegian Journalism Union,

P.O. Box  8793 Youngstorget, 0028 OSLO, NORWAY.

 

 

The winning entrant will be notified by the first week of August 2008. Airfare, hotel, per diems and conference registration for the journalist or one member of the team, is

included in the award. 

 

The presentation of the $2000.00 award and a plaque will be made at the Saturday

banquet of the Global Investigative Journalism Conference.

 

The first Global Shining Light Award was given at the GIJC-2007 in Toronto to the project "Power Brokers".

 

This was the result of the collaboration among six reporters:
Paul Christian Radu and Sorin Ozon from the Romania Centre for Investigative
Journalism, Eldina Pleho and Alison Knezevic from the Centre for Investigative
Reporting in Bosnia-Hercegovina, Stanimir Vlaglenov from Bulgaria, and Altin
Raxhimi from Albania.