21. 11. 2007

B92 WINS CORPORATE PHILANTHROPY AWARDS

BELGRADE, 21 November 2007 (B92) - B92 has received two VIRTUS 07 philanthropy awards in a ceremony in Belgrade last night.

RDP B92 CEO Veran Matić accepts award (B92)
The awards are given out for successful campaigns of public importance. It is awarded by the Balkan Community Initiatives Fund (BCIF).

Competing against Telenor and Erste Bank, B92 received the most prestigious award for public commitments, as well as the special award for media help in combating domestic violence.

The panel of judges called B92’s project for the construction of a safe house for abused women and the blood donor campaign systematic and determined, adding that the fact that a media company had been involved had greatly contributed to the massive response from both members of the public and companies.

Deputy Prime Minister Božidar Đelić said that the fact that 64 companies had been nominated for the award was a testament to Serbia’s social responsibility.

“A media company, which was courageous before the democratic changes and remains so today, has shown the highest level of social responsibility. It has launched projects to increase solidarity in fields where there is not enough,” Đelić said.

In his acceptance speech, RDP B92 Director Veran Matić said that the media’s job did not stop at professional reporting.

“We believe that the media has a duty to always be socially responsible. When we are talking about ethics in reporting, respect for one’s profession, reporters also have to recognize what is wrong with society. Even though these things are hard to change, we believe that it is important to engage ourselves in trying to solve the problem,” Matić said.