Nghe An Journalism Awards 2013: Outstanding in both Quantity and Quality

(Baonghean)- Every year, on June 21st, journalists in the province celebrate a journalism awards season with mixed feelings of joy and regret. To better understand the results and quality of this year's journalism awards and the lessons to be learned for future seasons, a reporter from Nghe An Newspaper interviewed Mr. Nguyen Ba Hao – Deputy Director of the Department of Information and Communications, Chairman of the Nghe An Journalism Awards Judging Panel 2013.

Reporters from Nghe An Newspaper working in Co Phat village, Mon Son commune (Con Cuong district). Photo: Reporter.

PVCould you please tell us about some of the results and quality of the 2013 journalism awards?

Mr. Nguyen Ba HaoAs the advisory body and Chairman of the annual Journalism Award Judging Council, the Department of Information and Communications has made many efforts to continuously improve the regulations of the award, aiming to enhance the quality of the journalism award each year. This year, the Judging Council has made some additions and adjustments to the regulations such as the award structure and the scoring system for each award category. On June 11, 2014, the People's Committee of Nghe An province issued Decision No. 2582/QD-UBND recognizing the results of the Nghe An Provincial Journalism Award 2013. Accordingly, in the 2013 Journalism Award, Nghe An had 29 winning works (including 2 First Prizes, 3 Second Prizes, 12 Third Prizes, and 12 Consolation Prizes), which are worthy representative works from various journalistic genres participating in the award.

According to the judging panel, 2013 was a year of many outstanding events for our province. It was the first year of implementing the contents of Resolution 26 of the Politburo on Nghe An; the entire province focused on building new rural areas and poverty reduction; the movement to study and follow the moral example of Ho Chi Minh; Party building; the legal violations of some individuals in Nghi Phuong commune; the flood release in Hoang Mai causing serious damage to people and property, as well as relief and assistance activities for those affected... all of which were truthfully and promptly reflected in the entries submitted to the competition.

Therefore, the number of entries and the quality of the winning works this year are superior to last year; this is due to the diversity of the fields reflected; the authors have made many explorations and explored a wide range of topics; some works are meticulously crafted, selecting issues to reflect and having a clear ideological orientation, resulting in a clear propaganda effect. Typical examples of award-winning works include: the special feature "Around the Law Violations in Nghi Phuong" (Nghe An Newspaper), the investigative report "The Journey to Discover the Truth About the Hoang Thien Long Heresy" (Nghe An Newspaper), the documentary "Where Do the Birds Go?" (Nghe An Radio and Television Station), the radio report "Issuing Duplicate Health Insurance Cards: Whose Responsibility Issuing This?" (Nghe An Radio and Television Station), notes on the funeral of General Vo Nguyen Giap (Nghe An Newspaper), the report "Developing Party Members in Rural, Mountainous, and Ethnic Minority Areas" (Nghe An Newspaper), the report "Implementing the Project on Reorganizing Party Organizations at the Grassroots Level" (Nghe An Newspaper), the report "Gold Thieves" (Provincial Radio and Television Station), the report "The Economic Story of Oysters" (Provincial Radio and Television Station), the series of news and photos about the floods in Hoang Mai (Nghe An Newspaper)...

Notably, this year saw a larger number of central press agencies based in the area participating, with 9 agencies submitting 15 entries (accounting for nearly 15% of the total entries). Among these were award-winning works such as the report "Illegal Labor Export in Nghe An – Struggling to Find Solutions" by Dai Doan Ket newspaper. Even more remarkably, this year, three district-level broadcasting stations had reports broadcast on the provincial broadcasting station that won high awards: the report "The Horror of Bleaching Agents" by Vinh City Broadcasting Station, the report "The Man Who Neutralized Snake Venom" by Tan Ky Broadcasting Station, and the report "A Monument Is Desperately Needed" by Do Luong Broadcasting Station.

More specifically, 2013 was the year Nghe An province, especially Nghe An Newspaper, achieved high results at the national journalism awards, with Nghe An Newspaper winning one A prize and one consolation prize; the provincial radio and television station won one B prize.

PV:So, what are the limitations of journalism as demonstrated in the entries submitted for the award?

Mr. Nguyen Ba Hao:Despite achieving some noteworthy results as mentioned above, through the submitted entries and judging results, it must also be acknowledged that we still lack many truly outstanding works that are highly persuasive to the public. There are still many topics that Nghe An province urgently needs media coverage on, but the works are either few or of unsatisfactory quality, such as the implementation of the contents of Resolution 26 of the Politburo on Nghe An; the campaign to follow the moral example of Ho Chi Minh; poverty reduction and new rural development; Party building; examples of good people and good deeds, and advanced models...

On the other hand, some works chose quite good issues (topics) but lacked sharpness in their execution and investment, resulting in low scores and no awards. These are regrettable limitations. Some authors only went as far as reflection or description, not reaching the level of analysis or commentary, thus failing to create a social impact.

Although Nghe An province has a large number of registered and licensed representative offices and resident reporters from central and provincial newspapers (37 representative offices and resident reporters, ranking fourth nationwide), these newspapers have not yet submitted high-quality works to the competition. The number of entries is still small, partly due to insufficient investment in the issues, and mainly because the articles are of low quality and lack depth, resulting in some entries being of low quality.

PV:As the chairman of the annual provincial press awards council, what are your hopes for the provincial press, especially regarding investment in entries for the awards?

Mr. Nguyen Ba Hao:First and foremost, it must be affirmed that journalists, when raising or writing about an issue, may not yet consider whether their work will be submitted to an award or whether it will win. However, the newspaper's principles and objectives are paramount; honest, objective reporting, and in-depth research are what constitute the quality of journalistic work. Therefore, we hope that from the very beginning (when putting pen to paper), authors will make a worthy investment in their work, striving for the highest quality, not chasing after quantity, form, or superficiality.

Representative offices and resident reporters of central and provincial press agencies located in the area need to actively, proactively, and wholeheartedly engage in issues of concern and direction from the province; issues of strategic, long-term importance with significant impact and persuasive power; and limit sensationalist and attention-grabbing news articles to produce high-quality journalistic works that contribute to the socio-economic development of the province. Furthermore, if participating in competitions, they should aim for high-ranking awards, worthy of the prestige of major newspapers with nationwide circulation and readership.

In the coming period, we hope that media agencies in general will consistently adhere to the province's principles, objectives, and propaganda orientation, effectively promoting the image and position of Nghe An in the era of openness, integration, and development; encouraging the emulation movement in labor and production, practicing thrift; promptly identifying and commending good people, good deeds, and advanced models; bringing the Party's guidelines and policies, and the State's laws into life, meeting the increasingly high information needs of the people.

PV.Thank you, sir!

PV

2013 was considered the year that Nghe An Newspaper won the most awards, including the highest awards in recent years. At the 2013 National Journalism Awards, Nghe An province had 3 winning entries. Specifically: The series of articles “Regarding the Law Violations in Nghi Phuong” by the team of authors Duc Chuyen and Khanh Ly (Nghe An Newspaper) won the A prize; the work “The Broken Net” by the team of authors Hoang Quyen, Truong Ca, and Tran Minh (Nghe An Radio and Television Station) won the B prize; and the series of articles: “Walking Along the Border” by the team of authors Thanh Chung, Thuc Anh, and Tran Hai (Nghe An Newspaper) won the Encouragement prize.

Notably, among the 29 winning entries in the Nghe An Provincial Journalism Awards in 2013, Nghe An Newspaper won 15 awards, accounting for half of the total number of winning entries, including: 1 First Prize for the series of articles: "Around the case of law violations in Nghi Phuong" by the team of authors Duc Chuyen - Khanh Ly; 1 Second Prize for the series of articles "The journey to find the truth about the Hoang Thien Long cult" by the team of reporters Nhat Lan and Viet Long; 6 Third Prizes; and 7 Consolation Prizes.

Ngoc Ha