The European Federation for Science Journalism has revealed the winners of its prestigious European Science Journalist of the Year award for 2023.
The award recognises and promotes excellence and innovation in science journalism across Europe, with nominations coming from national science journalism associations as well as individuals. See the stellar cast of nominations for this year’s Award.
This year’s award has been sponsored by Elsevier.
The winner and runners-up were announced at an awards ceremony held at the conference of the German Science Journalism Association in Freiburg, on 25 October 2023.
The 2023 winner is:
First place: Niki Korteweg, The Netherlands, a science journalist for the Dutch major daily newspaper NRC.
Read Niki’s articles:
- Anxious brain on the charger
- Nobody saw anything in mRNA. Just me.
- Long covid is a riddle without a quick solution
This year’s European Science Journalist of the Year, Niki Korteweg, said:
“I am deeply honored and grateful to receive this wonderful annual prize from the European Federation for Science Journalism, and to be recognized by such esteemed peers.
In an increasingly complex world where misinformation and mistrust in science flourishes and makes victims, I believe that high-quality science journalism is more important than ever”.
The runners up are:
Second place: Dániel Bolcsó, Hungary, a journalist and editor at Hungarian news site Telex.hu.
- The effectiveness of favipiravir is in question – yet those in Hungary who have expressed concerns have been prosecuted
- Plasma therapy: the Covid success story that wasn’t
- The distributor of the banned ‘lung vitamin’ has emerged behind yet another suspicious dietary supplement
Dániel, who was not able to attend the ceremony in person, said:
“I am honoured to receive this prize, because it is a rare opportunity to get valuable feedback on my work at an international level. I also consider it a recognition for Telex, which was founded only three years ago and has been operating in an unfavourable Hungarian media climate”.
Third place: Lea Udovč, Slovenia, a journalist, science editor and head of the video department at the Slovenian press agency (STA).
Read Lea’s articles:
- ‘No one suspected’. But she suffers in pain
- It’s powering humanity, and it has the power to change it
- In the lynx kingdom: paws, urine, shots, alarms… and a puppy with a new name
When asked what this award meant to her, Lea said:
“This award is a recognition for science journalism in Slovenia and the Balkan region. It is also an honour for the Slovenian Press Agency (STA), which gave me a foundation for quality journalism on which I could build, and for the N1 Slovenia portal, which gave me the freedom and space to express myself. I am sure the award will give us a new boost so that at the STA we will continue to strive for quality, interesting and creative content from the field of science both in text and video form.”
The first-place winner was awarded a prize of 1,000 Euro. Second and third-place winners were awarded 500 Euro each.
Krijn Soeteman, president of the EFSJ, said: “Today we celebrate the achievements of three exemplary science journalists on our European continent. They stand for a form of journalism which is more than just a niche, it can be a beacon of enlightenment in times with a lot of confusion. They question scientists and beyond. I hope news agencies across Europe recognise its paramount significance, for it bridges the gap between intricate science and the public sphere, fostering an informed, curious and progressive society.”
Michiel Kolman, SVP Research Networks, Elsevier, said “Elsevier is proud to support this award, which throws a spotlight on the very best in science journalism and the important role it plays. Many congratulations to Niki Korteweg, and the all runners up and shortlisted journalists, for their outstanding achievements and contributions.
“Now more than ever, science journalism plays a crucial role in communicating the facts to the public and deepening an understanding of scientific analysis and discovery – these awards are much needed to give profile to the very best in science journalism.”
Thank you to the judges:
- Maria Bolevich, Freelance science, health and environmental journalist for Nature, SciDev, and others
- Teresa Carr, Contributing Editor at Undark, and independent health and science journalist
- Cristina Da Rold, Freelance journalist
- Seán Duke, President of the Irish Science and Technology Journalists Association
- Andrada Fiscutean, Freelance science and technology journalist
- Polina Loseva, Senior Editor at N + 1
- Milica Momcilovic, President of the World Federation of Science Journalists
Thank you to the national associations who put the effort in to nominate science writers in their country:
- Croatian Journalists’ Association (Hrvatsko novinarsko društvo, HND)
- Association des Journalistes Scientifiques de la Presse d’Information (AJSPI)
- Dutch Association for Science Journalism and Communication (VWN)
- Association of British Science Writers (ABSW)
- Science Writers in Italy Association (SWIM)
- Swiss Association of Science Journalism (SASJ)
- Balkan Network of Science Journalists
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