Now that information is omnipresent and can be accessed within the minute, quality journalism has become increasingly difficult to make. To counter the effects of a transforming and pressured market, the European Press Prize was founded in 2012. To mark its fifth anniversary, the European Press Prize and De Balie will host a panel discussion on journalism under pressure. We will discuss the challenges for journalists working in countries with limited press freedom with Yavuz Baydar – an award-winning Turkish journalist exiled in France – and Bartosz Wieliński – head of the Foreign Department of one of Poland’s remaining independent dailies. Francesci Borri – one of the last journalists behind the frontlines in Syria – and Christiaan Triebert – a 25-year-old who has done fieldwork in Ukraine, Syria and Iraq – will share experiences on working in conflict-ridden areas. How does one write quality journalism under extreme pressure?
Panellists
– Yavuz Baydar is a Turkish journalist, blogger and co-founder of P24, the Platform for Independent Media. He writes regular columns for Süddeutsche Zeitung, and the Arab Weekly, with specific focus on Turkey's domestic and foreign policy issues. His opinion articles are published in The New York Times, The Guardian, El País, Index on Censorship, Svenska Dagbladet and Utrikespolitiska Magasinet. Baydar received The Special Award of the European Press Prize in 2014 for his fight against censorship and defence of professional values in Turkey. – Francesca Borri is an Italian journalist, specialised in Middle Eastern affairs. She has written books on Kosovo, and on Israel and Palestine. Her first book Non aprire mai (2008) was a study of the conflict in Kosovo. In 2010, she published a book on the Israel-Palestine conflict titled and in 2012, she began reporting from Syria. Her latest work La guerra dentro, published in 2016, is a work of reportage on the Syrian civil war. It has been translated to English under the title Syrian Dust. Borri has been nominated for this year’s Distinguished Writing Award of the European Press Prize for her article: Destination Paradise: Among the jihadists of the Maldives. – Christiaan Triebert is an all-source conflict analyst with an interest in conflict and development. Christiaan has conducted fieldwork in Syria, Iraq, and Ukraine, among many other countries. Other than Bellingcat, Christiaan has written for Hate Speech International, local Dutch media, and geolocates alleged civilian casualty events for Airwars. His work at Bellingcat and elsewhere has been referred to in Financial Times, Guardian, FRANCE24, Asharq Al-Awsat, Amnesty International, and others. Triebert has been nominated for this year’s Innovation Award of the European Press Prize for his article: The Turkish Coup through the Eyes of its Plotters. – Bartosz Wieliński is Polish journalist, political analyst of the Polish daily Gazeta Wyborcza. His considerable professional accomplishments include interviews with leading German politicians, such as the chancellor Angela Merkel. He is also the author of the book The bad Germany, which presents the twentieth-century Germany, a world full of criminals, fanatics, crime and inventions. In 2013 he won the prestigious Grand Press in the category of press reportage for ‘You’re no. 71’. Wieliński is the newest member of the European Press Prize preparatory committee. Next season he will assist with selecting another round of award-winning journalists.
Moderator: Ianthe Mosselman In the other hall:
Panel Pan-European Cooperation