His Majesty Felipe VI was responsible for presenting the winners with their awards, which consisted of sculptures by the artist Joaquín Vaquero Turcios and 10,000 euros each.
For the fortieth edition, 133 candidates from 17 countries took part in the six categories of these awards, created by the EFE Agency and the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (Aecid).
The works of journalists from Mexico, Colombia and Spain were finalists and during the gala in the Gabriela Mistral Theater of the Casa de America, great personalities of journalism who had received awards were commemorated.
Among them stand out: the Spanish-Peruvian Nobel Prize in Literature, Mario Vargas Llosa; Spanish writers Arturo Pérez Reverte, Carmen Posadas and Juan José Millás; including the Colombian Daniel Samper and the Brazilian photographer Sebastián Salgado.
An exhibition entitled “The Best of Iberoamerican Photojournalism” was opened two days ago, reflecting, through 41 snapshots, the facts, events and happenings of the societies, peoples and communities of the region and included in the International Awards King of Spain des Journalism.
EFE President Gabriela Cañas stressed that “the international awards, over their 40 editions, have helped to expand the borders of Ibero-America and bring international prominence to valuable journalistic stories about the events that have shaped our recent history .”
In his words, Cañas advocated quality journalism in the face of the emergence of new technologies that produce misinformation, hoaxes and fake news.
On this occasion, the report “Fentanyl: future for drug traffickers, death for humanity”, published in the Mexican medium N+ in the category “Narrative” was awarded.
After five months of investigations, the team led by Víctor Emmanuel Valles Mata and Adrián Tinoco managed for the first time to enter one of the Sinaloa cartel’s fentanyl laboratories and question local bosses and minors involved in the manufacture of this fentanyl drug.
The prize in the International Cooperation and Humanitarian Aid category went to Spanish journalist Jesús Martínez and photographer Marc Javierre-Kohan for J’accuse! The sack of Rosario’s house, published in Frontera Digital.
Spanish public body RTVE received an environmental journalism award for the Living Soils report, while Mexican journalist Víctor Núñez Jaime won in the culture section for The Second Exile of Sergio Ramírez.
With the drama of immigration still present for a year, the Colombian Manuel Salvador Saldarriaga won the prize in the photography category with “Risk your life across the Darién Gap”.
Another representative from Colombia, the independent digital medium Cuestión Pública, was recognized as the communication medium of Iberoamerica.
The event was attended by, among others, Minister of Foreign Affairs José Manuel Albares, President of Congress Meritxell Batet and Minister of the Presidency Félix Bolaños.
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