Elizabeth Neuffer Wins SAIS-Novartis Prize for Excellence

Elizabeth Neuffer of The Boston Globe is the winner of the second annual SAIS-Novartis Prize for Excellence in International Journalism. Ms. Neuffer won the award for "Buried Truth," a ten-part series of articles on war crimes in Bosnia and Rwanda. "Buried Truth" provides an in-depth look at atrocities committed during both conflicts, their impacts on the lives of individuals and families, and the failure of international organizations to pursue the responsible criminals.

Established by The Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) of the Johns Hopkins University, supported by an unrestricted grant from Novartis Ltd., the SAIS-Novartis Prize was created to recognize and encourage outstanding achievement in the coverage of international affairs. It is open to journalists from all countries and in all media. Said SAIS Dean Paul Wolfowitz, "Buried Truth" demonstrates "exceptional qualities of reportorial perseverance, courage and commitment and brought important, unresolved issues to the public's attention."

The 1996 award was won by Robert Fisk for a 16-part series, "Inside Algeria," written for the London Independent. In the 1997 competition, print, television and radio entries from 25 countries in ten languages were received. Ms. Neuffer's entry was selected by a distinguished panel of jurors which included Adnan Abu Odeh, Jordanian diplomat and author, political adviser to H.M. King Hussein; Barrie Dunsmore, former Diplomatic and Senior Foreign Correspondent for ABC News, now a fellow at the John F.Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University; Maria Jimena Duzan, Colombian journalist and author; Yoichi Funabashi, Washington Bureau Chief and Diplomatic Correspondent for Japan's Asahi Shimbun; Don Oberdorfer, award-winning former diplomatic correspondent for The Washington Post, currently Journalist-in-Residence at the Johns Hopkins Foreign Policy Institute and author of a forthcoming book on Korea; Ulrich Schiller, author and journalist, former foreign correspondent of Germany's Die Zeit newspaper, and Paul Wolfowitz, Dean of the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.

In addition to the $15,000 first prize, nine other finalists were recognized. Among them Douglas Farah of The Washington Post Magazine was first runner-up for "The Crack-Up: Inside America's Troubled War against the Cocaine Cartels," and Gilbert Lewthwaite and Gregory Kane of The Baltimore Sun were second runner-up for "Witness to Slavery." Seven "Certificates of Recognition for Excellence in International Journalism" were awarded to:

Sergei Parkhomenko of Itogi for his article, "The President will Undergo Heart Surgery Within the Next Three to Five Weeks."(Russia)

Jim Morris and Kevin Moran of The Houston Chronicle for "Lost at Sea." (US)

Masha Gessen of Sevodnia and Wired for "Chernobyl: The People and the Zone." (Russia and US)

Robert Thomson et al of The Financial Times for "The Great Copper Crash." (UK)

Elise Ackerman of the Miami New Times for "Notes from the Underground." (US)

Robert Fisk of The Independent for "Back to Bosnia." (UK)

Constance Stelzenm?ler of Die Zeit for "I Don't Belong Here Anymore." (Germany)

The SAIS-Novartis Prize for Excellence in International Journalism will be presented to Elizabeth Neuffer on Tuesday, 05/20/1997 during a one-day conference that will explore the media's impact on international events. The conference will take place at SAIS, 1740 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, in Washington, DC.

For more information on the SAIS-Novartis Prize or the 05/20 conference, please contact Veronique Rodman, SAIS-Novartis Program Coordinator, at 202.663-5722 or visit the SAIS-Novartis website.

For more information, contact Felisa Neuringer Klubes at the SAIS Public Affairs Office at 202.663.5626 or [email protected].