June 12, 2021
2 mins read

Indian-origin journo wins Pulitzer

Rajagopalan, who had previously reported from China but was barred from there for the story, travelled to neighbouring Kazhakstan to interview former detainees who had fled there, BuzzFeed said…reports Arul Louis.

Indian-origin journalist Megha Rajagopalan has won the US’ top journalism award, the Pulitzer Prize, for innovative investigative reports harnessing satellite technology that exposed China’s mass detention camps for Muslim Uighurs and other minority ethnicites.

The award in the international reporting category that she shared with two colleagues from an internet media, BuzzFeed News, was announced on Friday by the Pulitzer Board.

Another journalist of Indian-origin, Neil Bedi, won a Pulitzer in the local reporting category for investigative stories he wrote with an editor at the Tampa Bay Times exposing the misuse of authority by a law enforcement official in Florida to track children.

This is the 105th year of the Pulitzer Prizes awarded by a board at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism in New York recognising the outstanding work.

In recognition of the proliferation of citizen journalism in the internet age, teenaged non-journalist, Darnella Frazier, was awarded a Pulitzer Special Citation for her courage in filming the killing of George Floyd, the African-American who died in police custody in Minneapolis last year.

The video clip made on her smartphone went viral and set off prolonged nationwide protests against police brutality and led to measures in many states and cities to reform policing.

The sight of a policeman kneeling on the neck of dying Floyd as he repeated, “I can’t breathe”, appealed to America’s conscience and led to a broader consideration of the problems faced by African-Americans.

The Board said her that her video “spurred protests against police brutality around the world, highlighting the crucial role of citizens in journalists’ quest for truth and justice”.

Rajagopalan and her colleagues used satellite imagery and 3D architectural simulations to buttress her interviews with two dozen former prisoners from the detention camps where as many as a million Muslims from Uighur and other minority ethnicites were interned.

“I’m in complete shock, I did not expect this,” she said.

According to the publication, she and her colleagues, Alison Killing and Christo Buschek, identified 260 detention camps after building a voluminous database of about 50,000 possible sites comparing censored Chinese images with uncensored mapping software.

Rajagopalan, who had previously reported from China but was barred from there for the story, travelled to neighbouring Kazhakstan to interview former detainees who had fled there, BuzzFeed said.

“Throughout her reporting, Rajagopalan had to endure harassment from the Chinese government,” the publication said.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cay-zWBvmn8

The series of stories provided proof of Beijing’s violation of Uighurs’ human rights, which some US and other Western officials have called a “genocide”.

Bedi and Kathleen McGrory were given their award for exposing “how a powerful and politically connected sheriff built a secretive intelligence operation that harassed residents and used grades and child welfare records to profile schoolchildren”, the Pulitzer Board said.

Bedi, who has a degree in computer science, is now a Washington-based reporter for ProPublica.

ALSO READ-Gaza violence: Biden concerned for journalists

READ MORE-Journalists, General Rani Aur ISI Chief

Previous Story

Govt not to allow return of Kerala women who joined IS

Next Story

Bangladesh to buy Chinese vaccines

Latest from -Top News

Malhotra Tied to Pak Spy Ring?

Officials allege that Dhillon operated as a conduit for Pakistani Intelligence, using his channel to reach out to Indian YouTubers….reports Asian Lite News Fresh revelations in the espionage case against Indian YouTuber

Shehbaz govt Opens the Floodgates

The move comes at a time when Pakistan’s economy is crippled by unending political chaos and huge unrest in the provinces of Balochistan…reports Asian Lite News The government led by Pakistan Prime

India opens world’s highest rail bridge

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the world’s highest railway bridge over the Chenab River in Jammu and Kashmir and flagged off the much-awaited Vande Bharat Express to Srinagar, marking a historic moment

Sisi, MBZ cement ties

UAE and Egypt bolster ties through high-level talks in Abu Dhabi and a landmark cardiac care initiative delivering lifesaving treatment to rural communities The United Arab Emirates and Egypt reaffirmed their strong
Go toTop

Don't Miss

Indian innovator wins Commonwealth award

He designed a prefabricated sustainable shelter, SpaceEra, that would not

Canada Grapples with Historical Apology for Awarding Nazi Veteran

The Division members have been accused of killing Polish and