The Nicolas Lambert award 2021 was conferred, last evening, to Le Défi Media Group journalists, Ms Rajenee Panchoo and Mr Raj Bissessur, for the news item entitled ‘Diego Garcia: Un des témoins du départ’, during an award ceremony for the Nicolas Lambert Competition, organised by the Media Trust, at the Caudan Arts Centre in Port-Louis.
The winners received a trophy and a cash prize of Rs 40,000. Mr Al-Khizr Ramdin, from the same media house was the runner-up, and received a trophy and a cash prize of Rs 20,000.
The President of the Republic of Mauritius, Mr Prithvirajsing Roopun, members of the Diplomatic Corps and the Director of the Government Information Service, Mr Rama Krishna Veeramundar, were present on the occasion.
In his address, President Roopun recalled that the Prix Nicolas Lambert is a singular platform to celebrate, encourage and recognise commitment, dedication and excellence in journalism. He said that the Media Trust has the major responsibility to set high standards for journalism and ensure that those in the profession continuously benefit from training. Constant upskilling is vital to expand one’s knowledge, learn new practices, and embrace new techniques, he added. He lauded the dedication of the Media Trust to continuously conduct training courses on various pertinent issues despite COVID-19 related constraints.
President Roopun also affirmed that the press is an essential circuit for collecting information, sharing opinion, and imparting ideas to the public, and stressed on the need to remain accurate and objective.
Moreover, he dwelt on the need to have the unconditional support of the entire Mauritian press as regards the country’s fight for its sovereignty over Chagos. It is more than ever crucial that we all speak with one voice, and there should be unambiguous and unequivocal support from all quarters without any discordance, he said.
In the message of the Chairman of the Media Trust, Mr Chayman Surajbali, which was delivered by the Vice-Chairperson, Ms Fateema Capery, the aim of the Media Trust, which is to have quality journalism with qualified and highly professionally trained journalists who perform professionally and responsibly, and in so doing, honour the profession, was highlighted.
We want responsible media practitioners to remain committed to the general principles such as seeking the truth and reporting independently, she stated. While highlighting that the media in Mauritius has been the voice of the voiceless, the hope of the hopeless, she underlined that journalists should be careful to not bask in sensationalism. Our vigilance, she emphasised, will have to be based on verified truth, veracity, and accuracy.
In addition, she stated that responsible media should ensure that their reports are balanced, objective, and unbiased and added that journalistic activism must be tempered by self-imposed limits.
Other awards were remitted as follows:
Category photo
Ms Rajenee Panchoo, who received a special mention from the jury.
Radio
Ms Santana Ponceneau (Wazaa FM), who received a special mention from the jury.
Sports
Ms Jenny Raboud (Defimedia)
Gender-sensitive reporting
Mr Ritvik Neerbun (MBC)
Multimedia more than 5 minutes
Mr Jean -Luc Emile
Multimedia less than 5 minutes
Mr Louis David Casimir (MBC Rodrigues)
Investigation
Mr Al-Khizr Ramdin
MBC Graphic Designer, Mr Yudhish Hazareesing was also selected to create the new logo of the Media Trust. He won a cash prize of Rs 30,000.
The Prix Nicolas Lambert is meant to reward journalists from the written press, broadcast, and online media who have in the past year shone either with their printed articles or photos or multimedia productions or interviews. Since 2015, the Awards night has been an annual feature of the activities of the Media Trust.
