Beyond Borders announces 2010 Media Award winners

Stories include investigation of humanitarian abuse in Haiti, profile of a pedophile

WINNIPEG, Nov. 3 /CNW/ - Beyond Borders, Canada's global voice against child sexual exploitation, announced the winners of its 8th annual Media Awards today. The awards honour journalists and filmmakers for exemplary coverage of child sexual exploitation.

"Our independent judges evaluated 30 nominations in five categories," says Deborah Zanke, co-chair of the Media Awards. "The winning stories illuminate the complex and global issue of child sex abuse skillfully and respectfully."

Don Lajoie of The Windsor Star won in the English print category for Fallen Angels, a five-part series on humanitarian misconduct in Haiti. His coverage of child sexual abuse committed by aid workers was the result of a two-month investigation.

Voleurs d'enfance, by Kathleen Frenette of the Journal de Québec, won the French print award for its look into the lives of men undergoing rehabilitation after sexually abusing children.

StandAlone Productions and Working Title Productions's Olin Quam, Shelley Woodman, and David Bercovici-Artieda won the English electronic award for their documentary, Think Again. Interviews with three survivors of the sex trade shed light on the causes and consequences of child sexual exploitation.

L'incurable, by Radio-Canada's Julie Vaillancourt, Laurent Richard, and Pier Gagné, won the French electronic award for its frank and disturbing exploration of the mind of a pedophile.

Priya Tandon of the University of Manitoba won the English student award for Girlie Bars, and Everything in Between, a first-person reflection on Thailand's sex trade.

There were no submissions in the French student award category.

The winners will receive their awards on November 19 at a ceremony in Winnipeg. The event will feature a keynote address by Meredith Ralston, an academic and award-winning filmmaker whose development work in the Philippines led to the production of a documentary, Selling Sex in Heaven, about sex tourism in that country.

About Beyond Borders
Beyond Borders is a national non-profit organization that advances the rights of children to be free from sexual exploitation. It is a representative of ECPAT International operating in 75 countries around the world. Visit beyondborders.org for more information as well as a full list of media awards nominees.

For further information:

Deborah Zanke, [phone]
Jennifer Clark, [phone]