26th Radio Prize for Adult Education awarded

"The diversity of the media landscape is a very important component of democratic thought, life and action. We depend on it to form critical opinions and sharpen our arguments. We depend on it to teach us new things and to remind us of our own obligation to pay attention when we jump to conclusions." (John Evers)

With these words, John Evers, spokesman for the jury, introduced the free prize speech for the 26th Adult Education Radio Prize by Walter Hämmerle on the evening of 12 December 2023.

Walter Hämmerle is the head of the domestic political editorial department of the Kleine Zeitung and was involved in the presentation of the 26th Adult Education Radio Prize and the appropriate recognition of the winners in a twenty-minute award speech.

This year, the radio prizes went to productions from Ö1, FM4 and Freies Radio Innsbruck FREIRAD. Evers emphasised the jury's difficult decision, as all the nominated programmes were of particularly high quality and excellent educational value.

The winners

Alexander Musik and Natasa Konopitzky were honoured with the 26th Radio Prize for Adult Education in the Culture category for "Wut ist mein Territorium: Die Schriftstellerin Virginie Despentes", a Tonspuren contribution on Ö1.

Andrea Kandioler-Kiml and Elisabeth Stratka won the prize in the Documentation/Information category for their contribution "Femicide Number 30", an Ö1 production in the Hörbilder series.

Elisabeth Scharang and Barbara Zeithammer won with "Retten, wer zu retten ist. How can we close the massive care gaps in child and adolescent psychiatry in Austria?", a Punkt Eins programme on Ö1, and thus won the category Talks/Debates.

In the Education/Science category (Eduard Ploier Prize*), the programme "Frau, Mutter, Wissenschaftlerin: Das Ringen um Möglichkeiten" by Marlene Weck, Anna-Julia Saiger and Charlotte Trippolt won. The programme is part of the ReVulvation series, broadcast by Innsbruck Free Radio - FREIRAD.

Elisabeth Scharang, Claus Pirschner and Diana Köhler won the radio prize in the category Series/Thematic focus for their series "FM4 Field Recordings".

"In their contributions, the winners criticise gender-specific violence, gaps in care in the psychosocial sector and in child and adolescent psychiatry, the social situation of children and young people in assisted living communities and of LGBTIQ+ refugees in Austria. It is also about working conditions in the hotel sector and industry. The winners show how important personal approaches and unusual ideas are for adult education and political education by radio producers," Evers continued.

Presentation

The awards were presented by representatives of the associations of the Austrian Conference for Adult Education (KEBÖ) - Anna Thaller for ARGE BHÖ, Michael Sturm for the Austrian Vocational Training Institute, Gottfried Luger for the Austrian Library Association, Bernd Wachter for the Forum of Catholic Adult Education in Austria, Florian Herzog for the Rural Training Institute, Georg Primas for the Ring Österreichischer Bildungswerke, Pia Lichtblau for the Verband Österreichischer Gewerkschaftlicher Bildung, Jamie Woitynek and Peter Zwielehner for the Verband Österreichischer Volkshochschulen, Lukas Oppermann for the Volkswirtschaftliche Gesellschaft Österreich and Tatjana Baborek for the Wirtschaftsförderungsinstitut der Wirtschaftskammer Österreich.

Bernd Wachter from the Forum of Catholic Adult Education in Austria welcomed around one hundred people on behalf of the KEBÖ associations in the large broadcasting hall of the RadioKulturhaus and also presented the Eduard Ploier Prize to the winners. Ingrid Thurnher hosted the ceremony and also congratulated the award winners. The presentation was moderated by the spokesperson of the jury, John Evers (Association of Austrian Adult Education Centres), together with Juliane Nagiller, science editor and radio producer at Ö1 (Science, Education and Society).

Vienna, 12.12.2023

 

*The Austrian adult educator Eduard Ploier, who died in 1998, was director of the Bildungshaus Schloss Puchberg and from 1974 to 1998 a member of the ORF listeners' and viewers' representatives and a member of the board of trustees.

 

Text: https://www.medienpreise.at/radiopreis/

Picture: Michaela Obermair