NEW YORK – The International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences has announced the nominees for the 2018 News & Current Affairs categories. Winners will be presented with Emmys in New York on October 1, at Jazz at Lincoln Center. The International Emmy winners will be recognised alongside their American news and documentary peers.
The 8 nominees span 7 countries: Brazil, Denmark, Germany, Qatar, Russia, Turkey and the United Kingdom.
Turkish public broadcaster’s TRT World has garnered its first ever Emmy nomination in the Current Affairs category for its coverage of Syrian refugees resorting to selling their kidney to organ brokers for a passage to Europe.
Danish Public Broadcaster DR TV scored its first nomination in the Current Affairs category for an investigation co-produced with ZDF German Television, into human smugglers bringing millions of migrants to Europe.
Additionally, Brazil’s TV Globo is nominated in both categories for coverage of the prison system collapse in the Rio Grande de Norte jail in early 2017 (News) and children of victims of domestic violence in Brazil (Current Affairs).
International Emmy Winner Deeyah Khan is nominated in Current Affairs for her coverage of US neo-Nazis and white nationalists produced by Fuuse Films and broadcast on ITV.
“Historically we congratulate our nominees for their persistence and bravery in covering stories, and now we realize we also have to congratulate them for standing up to governments who would severely restrict what they report or put them out of business entirely.” said Bruce L. Paisner, President & CEO of the International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.
“You only have to look at the list of nominees to see all the problems in the world and how badly we need broadcast journalists to uncover misbehaviour and raise awareness.”
The full list of nominees is as follows:
News
#MosulSOS
RT
Russia
The operation in Mosul killed thousands of civilians, while hundreds of thousands of others were forced to flee for their lives. On the ground, reports from the war-ravaged cities have shown that the level of civilian suffering was so massive that RT decided to launch the hashtag #MosulSOS.
Jornal GloboNews: Dozens killed and wounded in Alcacuz prison riot – the collapse of Brazil’s prison system
GloboNews / TV Globo
Brazil
In early 2017, Brazil experienced a collapse of the prison system. A jail in Rio Grande do Norte, in terrible conditions, emerged as a scenario for fights between gangs. 26 prisoners died. Clashes were broadcasted live, laying bare the lack of control by the authorities.
Newsgrid: Qatar Crisis Special
Al Jazeera English
Qatar
This special offered in-depth analysis and reporting on the Gulf Country Council Crisis, in which Qatar was blockaded by air, sea and land routes by its neighboring countries. Al Jazeera English found itself at the center of the story, with blockading countries demanding it be closed.
Sky News: Rohingya Crisis
Sky News
United Kingdom
Rakhine had been closed off for months, but Sky News managed to gain access to witness the dire conditions and the suffering of the Rohingya people stranded there, exposing what the Myanmar government had denied.
Current Affairs
GloboNews Especial: Children of Maria da Penha
GloboNews / TV Globo
Brazil
We showcase stories about children of victims of domestic violence. Brazil is considered one of the most violent countries for women in the world. A recent study shows that 71% of these victims who die leave children behind. They don’t receive any special assistance or psychological care.
Menschenschmuggler: Das Geschäft mit den Flüchtlingen
DR TV (Danish Television) / ZDF German Television
Germany
Human smugglers reveal – on camera – the secrets of their trade. We offer an inside look at the industry that has brought millions of migrants to Europe, while European politicians promise to put an end to the uncontrolled and illegal influx.
Off the Grid: Silent Death on a Syrian Journey
TRT World
Turkey
With no other way to survive, Abu Ahmed resorted to selling one of his kidneys. So did Abdullah, in exchange for free passage to Europe. But things didn’t go as planned as they have been duped by remorseless and unscrupulous organ brokers, like Abbas, who cheated them.
White Right: Meeting the Enemy
Fuuse Films / ITV
United Kingdom
Muslim filmmaker Deeyah Khan meets US neo-Nazis and white nationalists face to face, and attends America’s biggest and most violent far-right rally in recent years.