CINS Wins Award for Investigative Podcast “Traces”

Awards for the best investigative stories of the past year were presented at a ceremony held on 7 October in Belgrade. The Center for Investigative Journalism of Serbia (CINS) won second prize for its investigative podcast Traces, season The Pit, authored by Stefan Marković and Jovana Nikolić (née Tomić).

In the The Pit season, CINS journalists revealed the circumstances surrounding the 2022 Soko mine accident. We sought to determine whether the tragedy was a result of “force majeure,” as claimed by the prosecution, or whether there actually were accountable parties responsible for the deaths of the eight miners.

Jury member Snježana Milivojević explained the reasoning behind the award:

“Very complex work, meticulously researched tragedy and its causes with respect for individuals and communities affected by it. Subtle and very compelling presentation of sensitive topics makes a step-by-step introspection into a mining tragedy a vivid and captivating journalistic piece.  Successful combination of new format (podcast) and investigative journalism results in an audio piece featuring a variety of journalistic skills. Podcast format greatly contributes to the overall quality and innovates domestic investigative journalism.”

“Traces” is Serbia’s first investigative podcast and is available on Spotify, Apple, Deezer, YouTube (episode on the Ribnikar tragedy, episode on the miners’ deaths), as well as on CINS’s website.

The jury – composed of Aleksandra Nikšić, editor at BBC News Serbian, Milka Tadić Mijović, president of the Centre for Investigative Journalism in Montenegro (CIN), and Snježana Milivojević, retired professor from the Faculty of Political Sciences in Belgrade – shortlisted 19 out of 34 stories and podcasts for the award.

A total of five stories and one podcast series received awards: two third prizes, two second prizes, and two first prizes.

Third place went to two KRIK stories: Police report: Nebojša Stefanović and Marko Parezanović Helped the Šarić Clan by Stevan Dojčinović, Bojana Jovanović and Sofija Parojčić; and Tešić Uses “Pawns” from the SNS to Evade Sanctions and Earn Millions of Euros by Stevan Dojčinović and Dragana Pećo.

Second place was shared by CINS’s podcast and BIRN’s story: Investigative Podcast “Traces” – season “The Pit” by Jovana Nikolić (née Tomić) and Stefan Marković (CINS); and Domestic Violence Against Children: The Invisible Victims by Dragana Prica Kovačević, Teodora Ćurčić and Gordana Andrić (BIRN).

First place was awarded to two BIRN stories: Proven: BIA Hacks Activists’ Phones by Aleksa Tešić; and the series of articles on arms exports to Israel by Saša Dragojlo.

According to the organizers, the EU Investigative Journalism Awards are also presented in Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, North Macedonia, Albania, Kosovo, and Turkey, with the aim of drawing attention to and promoting the exceptional achievements of investigative journalists, as well as increasing the visibility of high-quality investigative journalism in these countries.