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Atex supports The Martin Adler Prize and awards freelance cameraman Mike Saburi

John Hawkins, CEO Atex and Mike Saburi

Monday 17. November 2008 - ¡ Yesterday, during the annual Rory Peck Awards, Atex had the honour to be sponsor of the important Martin Adler Prize, devoted to freelance news gatherers that risk their everyday life to tell stories. ¡ This year the prize went to Mike Saburi, Zimbabwean freelance cameraman

Last night, during the annual Rory Peck Awards which celebrates the work of freelance cameramen and camerawomen in newsgathering, Atex, the world’s largest provider of mission-critical software solutions and services to the global media industry, had the honour to sponsor The Martin Adler Prize, devoted to those freelance journalists that everyday play a vital part in telling a significant news story.
John Hawkins, Atex Chief Executive Officer, says: “Our job is to support media companies in bringing news to the world. Our decision to support the efforts of The Rory Peck Trust is in recognition of the important role that we feel freelancers play in supporting our industry.”
The winner of this important prize, this year, was Mike Saburi, a Zimbabwean freelance cameraman who has been covering a regime where journalists have been targeted with permanent surveillance, threats and attacks. The Committee to Protect Journalists lists Zimbabwe among the ten worst countries for hostility to the media. The journalists who are left in Zimbabwe are brave and dedicated. They take risks daily—risks that their families must share. The trustees chose to honour this year’s recipient of the Martin Adler Prize for his commitment to telling the story he lives each day.

Mike Saburi was born and raised in Zimbabwe. He graduated from covering press conferences to shooting some of the iconic images of the farm invasions. This past year he has been on the campaign trail and uncovered some of the dramatic effects of the economic crisis. Mike Saburi’s continued presence in Zimbabwe has allowed agencies and international broadcasters to continue to tell the story of country in crisis.
Saburi writes: Zimbabwe’s media space has become increasingly small and the daily dangers of working in the country are worsened when you leave the relative safety of the capital to cover news in the countryside. With all the election candidates campaigning outside Harare, I have always had to watch over my shoulder for any possible dangers…working in Zimbabwe is becoming increasingly difficult.

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