Zaruhi Mejlumyan - the prize-winner of the Free Mass Media 2017
From the psychological pressure to the real danger of life, these are the challenges that are forced to be overcome by the Free Mass Media prize winners. The prize is awarded for the efforts invested in strengthening the freedom of the press, despite the pressure and financial difficulties. On October 18, the solemn ceremony of awarding the Free Mass Media 2017 prize was held in Kiev. Hetsq's journalist Zaruhi Mejlumyan is one of those who received the prize of the Fritt Ord (Oslo) and ZEIT-Stiftunghas (Hamburg) Funds. Russians Anton Naumlyuk and Sergey Jholkin, journalists of Azerbaijani Meidan TV, were also awarded. Journalists of the Azerbaijani Meidan TV know the worth of free speech very well. It is equal to the personal freedom; you either leave the country, or you get arrested. Anton Naumlyuk works in Crimea, and as surprising as it may seem, the Ukrainian human rights activists nominated his candidacy. He mainly sheds light on the political trials. He said that he tried to work according to journalists' objective principles; he could write that Crimea was taken by Russia but he could not speak about returning the lands to Ukraine, as in that case he would be imprisoned on charges of separatism. There are two examples when this legal norm was put into force. Sergey Jholkin delivers his message through cartoons. No incidents should be dropped out in order to have impressive cartoons. Putin in his cartoons is quite different from others, there he is short and looks depressed. He thinks that such Putin is more comprehensible for the people. What can effect the journalist's activities? Jholkin assured that there was no external factor, only the internal, hoping that one day even the internal factor will not exist. Zaruhi Mejlumyan agreed with him. She thought that journalism could undergo changes and become the real fourth force. The ceremony of distribution of prizes Free Mass Media-2017 was preceded by a two-day conference, attended by last year's participants. Alexey Shalaysky, who works in the prize-winner of 2016, the Ukrainian periodical "Our Groshi", presented how the journalist was being given bribes so that not to publish the information on corruption. There had been so many suggestion of that kind that the journalists had a discussion on what amount of money to suggest, so that no one could pay it. "Of course, there are corrupted journalists, but our prize is so high that no one can buy us," said the Ukrainian journalist. To remind, A1+ was awarded with the prize in 2011.
