Award ceremony for the “Plan Media Prize for Children’s Rights”

2023-11-08 08:17:13

Lukas Matzinger receives first prize for his Falter report on “Vienna’s Lost Children”!

Vienna (OTS) – Yesterday, the non-profit private foundation Hilfe mit Plan Österreich awarded the “Plan Media Prize for Children’s Rights” journalist prize worth a total of 6,000 euros. The prize honors media contributions that draw attention to the living conditions and rights of girls and boys. The prize was awarded in cooperation with the Federal Chancellery and the Association of Austrian Newspapers Federal Minister for Women, Family, Integration and Media, MMag. Dr. Susanne Raab, from the President of the VÖZ, Markus Mair and Rudi Klausnitzer, Member of the board of the private foundation Hilfe mit Plan Österreichhand over.

“Every year, the Plan Media Prize for Children’s Rights brings journalists and media to the forefront who help ensure that children, their problems and their rights get our attention. This is one of the important tasks of media in our digitalized world.”, says Rudi Klausnitzer, board member of the Help with Plan Austria private foundation.

First prize goes to Lukas Matzinger for his Falter contribution “Vienna’s Lost Children”. “I am absolutely delighted about the Media Prize for Children’s Rights plan. Also for me as a writer, but above all because of the attention he gives to the lost young people with mental illnesses and substance addictions in Vienna’s city park.”, says Lukas Matzinger happily.

The jury, consisting of Vanessa Böttcher (Prize winner 2022), Patricia Pawlicki, Gerald Grünberger, Johannes Bruckenberger, Tarek Leitner as well as Rudi Klausnitzer about the winning entry: „With his impressive report, Lukas Matzinger gives us a look at the problems of children in the middle of our city. He doesn’t lecture about it, but takes us with him and speaks directly to children and young people. In doing so, he gives them a voice, an opportunity to express themselves and allows them to show very impressively that these crises and problems with which they have to struggle are not just theirs, not just those of a certain group or generation, but us as a whole affect society.”

Markus Mair, President of the Association of Austrian Newspapers: “Professional journalism depicts, analyzes, comments on, and contextualizes real events. This also includes dealing with difficult and even depressing issues and giving a voice to those in our society who cannot speak for themselves. I am therefore very pleased that the Association of Austrian Newspapers has supported this award as a partner since 2014 because I am firmly convinced that high-quality media also pay attention to compliance with the rights of children and young people and highlight grievances and negative developments in the interest of the general public must. With their research results, this year’s award winners sometimes raise sensitive and unpleasant, but all the more important questions and bring the situation of one of the most vulnerable groups in our society increasingly into the public eye. At the same time, they represent a decisive corrective for political decisions. For this valuable achievement, they more than deserve to be awarded the Plan Media Prize for Children’s Rights 2023.”

Saskia Wolfesberger is pleased about the second prize with the contribution “Rejected”, published in News. The third prize goes to Gerald John for his article published in the Standard “The lights went out with Covid”.

Susanne Raab, Federal Minister for Women, Family, Integration and Media: “I would like to thank not only the initiators of the “Plan Media Prize for Children’s Rights”, but also all journalists whose work gives the youngest members of our society a voice and thus draws attention to issues that are often ignored. With high-quality journalism on the subject of children’s rights, these journalists are helping to make our society a little more vigilant and attentive.”