SOPA Receives Record Breaking Number of Entries for 2015

The Society of Publishers in Asia Receives Record Breaking Number of Entries for 2015 Awards
HONG KONG, CHINA - Media OutReach - 30 April, 2015 - The Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) has received a record breaking number of entries for the upcoming SOPA Awards for Editorial Excellence.

Entering its 17th anniversary, the SOPA Awards received over 600 entries in English and Chinese. The Awards are widely regarded as the most prestigious awards in the publishing industry. Shortlisted finalists will be announced in May, and the winners will be announced at the Gala Dinner onWednesday, June 10, 2015, at Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.

"I'm delighted to report strong participation from publications from all over Asia. SOPA plays an indispensable role as standard bearer of journalistic excellence and supporter of a free press in Asia. The lively response this year is a healthy sign that a free press in the region thrives, despite the obstacles standing in its way," said Mr. Tom Leander, Chairman of the SOPA Awards for Editorial Excellence Awards Committee.

The SOPA Awards for Editorial Excellence covers 18 categories including news, photography, lifestyle and design. New judging criteria for the award category is adopted and the resulting "Journalist of the Year" in only one winner. Last year, various renowned local and international news agencies received awards such as Reuters, Financial Times. The Journalist of the Year was Mr. Todd Pitman from The Associated Press.

This year SOPA is honoured to have Jimmy Lai, founder of Next Media Group, as the evening's distinguished speaker, interviewed by Hugo Restall of The Wall Street Journal.

Each category will be evaluated by a panel of judges appointed by the Awards Administrators, JMSC of the Hong Kong University, and conducted by a team of more than 100 international judges around the globe including journalists, editors, columnists from leading publications, and notable academics from media departments of prestigious universities. The judging panel will be led by Head of Judges, Jeffrey Timmermans, a Director of the undergraduate journalism program at The University of Hong Kong and expert journalist. The Deputy Head of Judge will be King-wa Fu, an assistant professor at The University of Hong Kong's Journalism & Media Studies Centre.

Mr. Raymond Warhola, Chairman of SOPA, said, "The quantity and quality of the 2015 entries underscore the importance of SOPA's stewardship of these essential awards, the most important contest for journalistic excellence in the region. While the awards are SOPA's centrepiece event, our organization is also adding workshops for journalists, panel discussions for publishers and advertisers and webinars. As publishing in Asia grows and evolves, SOPA is growing with it, serving the community and upholding the industry's best values."

This year SOPA is organising a new daytime program on the same day as the Gala dinner on June 10th. A journalist workshop presentation will be held in the morning at Journalism & Media Studies Centre at The University of Hong Kong. Presenters from CommonWealth, International New York Times, Quartz and The Wall Street Journal will share the happenings in news journalism reporting on the past events such as the Occupy Hong Kong. Tours of Google and Bloomberg Media offices will be held in the afternoon.

The SOPA 2015 Awards for Editorial Excellence is supported by Invest Hong Kong (Platinum Sponsor) and Google (Silver Sponsor). K11 is the Supporting Sponsor. CatchOn is the public relations partner, and Media OutReach is the newswire partner.

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