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AFP launches 2016 Kate Webb Prize for frontline journalism in Asia

Global news agency AFP has launched the 2016 Kate Webb Prize for Asian journalists doing exceptional work in difficult or dangerous conditions in the region.

The winner, who will be selected from applicants by a jury, will receive 3000 euros (approx. $3,400) in cash. Applications are open until June 3, 2016.
 

The winner will be announced during the summer and will be invited to a prize-giving ceremony later in the year.
 

The contest is open to Asian photo, video and text journalists for work published in the course of 2015. “We would like to encourage more visual journalists to apply this year. Photographers and video journalists are producing outstanding work in Asia and they need recognition and encouragement,” said Philippe Massonnet, AFP’s regional director for Asia-Pacific region.
 

“There are a lot of very brave unsung heroes doing fine journalism in sometimes very tricky situations across Asia; defying physical danger, political pressure and other difficulties to tell stories that people really need to hear,” Massonnet added.
 

Applications will be accepted until midnight in Hong Kong (1600 GMT) on Friday, June 3.
 

Thai investigative journalist Mutita Chuachang of the non-profit online newspaper Prachatai received the 2015 prize for her fearless independent reporting on democracy, human rights and the environment in her country.
 

The Kate Webb Prize was first awarded in 2008 to Pakistani reporter Mushtaq Yusufzai for his coverage of the dangerous tribal lands bordering Afghanistan. Other winners were multimedia journalist Patricia Evangelista from the Philippines, Indian reporter and photographer Dilnaz Boga, Indonesian journalist Stefanus Teguh Edi Pramono, and the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism.
 

The prize is named after Kate Webb, one of AFP’s finest correspondents who died in 2007 at the age of 64. Webb, who was born in New Zealand, earned a reputation as a fearless reporter while covering the Vietnam War and other historic events in Asia during a career spanning four decades. The prize is administered by AFP and the Webb family.
 

Please send applications by email to: [email protected].

Applicants should submit the following:
1. A letter to the AFP Kate Webb Prize Jury explaining why you deserve the prize.
2. Your CV with two professional references.
3. For reporters and photographers, at least three (3) samples of your work published on different dates in 2015. They can be submitted in PDF format for printed work or via links to the web versions. The more samples you submit, the better.
3. For video journalists, at least three (3) samples your work broadcast or published online in 2015 via links to YouTube or other hosting sites.
4. We accept work in English or any Asian national language, provided that there is an English translation. Photo captions must be in English.
5. The competition excludes AFP staff, stringers and their relatives.



About AFP

AFP is a global news agency delivering fast, accurate, in-depth coverage of the events shaping our world from conflicts to politics, sports, entertainment and the latest breakthroughs in health, science and technology. With 2,326 staff spread across almost every country, AFP covers the world 24 hours a day in six languages. AFP delivers the news in video, text, photos, multimedia and graphics to a wide range of customers including newspapers and magazines, radio and TV channels, web sites and portals, mobile operators, corporate clients as well as public institutions.

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