France: 26th Bayeux Calvados-Normandy award for war correspondents

From 7 to 13 October Bayeux will be hosting the 26th Bayeux Calvados-Normandy award for war correspondents. The town, the Department of Calvados, the Normandy Region and their partners are organising a unique event devoted to a singular profession - that of the war correspondent. Through this profession, the event will be seeking to decipher past, current and alas future conflicts via three debate evenings, an evening award ceremony, eight original exhibitions, screenings of films and documentaries, activities for school children, a book fair and the unveiling of a commemorative stone at the Reporters' Memorial.

Witnesses to both major and little known conflicts, men and women ranging from the most eminent senior correspondents to reporters beginning their careers will all be pressing the pause button in the capital of the Bessin region. They will be there to shed light and provide insight into the darkest regions of the planet and award prizes to the best photographic, television, radio and print reports; to raise questions about and explain what their work is for, and to pay tribute to colleagues who have been imprisoned, killed or have disappeared.

Last year's anniversary edition will be remembered by 40,000 people and provided a clear demonstration of the need to create a resource centre. The content of this years event, whose president is the British photojournalist Gary Knight, will be further strengthened with a virtual reality experience provided by the BBC and an additional exhibition. The programme includes: 40 years of war in Afghanistan, an exhibition of testimonies from Aleppo, the 30th anniversary of Tiananmen Square, a focus on Venezuela, a country which is also the subject of a debate evening, and a tribute to the work of Alfred Yaghobzadeh on walls around the town, designed to make passers-by stop and think.

In the face of news and information being disseminated more and more rapidly, we believe more than ever that young people are a crucial audience. We are organising residencies, the "15-Year Olds' Perspective", HCR-Ouest-France encounters, an AFP day, the Normandy Region Prize awarded by students and apprentices, Prix Bayeux classes, and encounters with the Dysturb collective, all of which are opportunities to provide education about news and information, raise awareness and awaken curiosity in young people who are discovering the world and, like ourselves, trying to gain a better understanding of it.

Check out the program HERE

© Yannis Behrakis / Reuters

 

 

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