The Yerevan Press Club (YPC) celebrated its 22nd anniversary on July 18. Since 1998, YPC has been giving out awards on its birthday to Armenia’s best journalists, media outlets, and media organizations.

Some of the awards were in memory of killed or deceased colleagues.

YPC award nominations are determined every year according to the award-winners’ work and public demand.

For the best combination of quality journalism and innovation, RFE/RL’s Armenian service (Azatutyun) journalist Narine Ghalechian received the Valery Aydinyan Award.

For the two-part film series The Fight for War and Peace depicting the Armenian community in war-torn Syria, First Channel’s Special Projects Editor Tigran Danielyan received the Tigran Naghdalyan Award.

Also receiving YPC awards were the Region Research Center (for its study of 2017 parliamentary election coverage in Armenian online media and social media), the website Sut.am (for its initiative to confront the spread of false information), and journalist Lusine Hovhannisyan (for her original presentation of a publicist piece).

For professional coverage of sports in Armenia, photographer Hakob Berberyan received the Armen Nikoghosyan Award. The award was given by the first laureate of this award, sports journalist Vera Martirosyan. The Ruben Mangasaryan Award was not awarded this year. 

The Communities Finance Officers Association established an award as part of the Civic Engagement in Local Governance (CELoG) project, which is implemented jointly with the support of USAID.

The 2016–2017 CELoG award-winners were Hetq.am journalist Yeranuhi Soghoyan and Alaverdi’s Ankyun+3 TV station.

Soghoyan received an award for being loyal to the topic of reforms in the local self-government system, while the TV station, for consistent coverage of the problems of the community and the local self-government system.

YPC President Boris Navasardyan said in a free and diverse environment such as the one media outlets are in, they try to find people who symbolize time.

He mentioned that in the coming year, YPC will provide also professional training and networking opportunities to the award-winners.

See previous years’ recipients of YPC awards here.

Gagik Aghbalyan