Jury
2025
Judging was conducted by an international jury of news media professionals and experts on the subject of war and armed conflicts.
Jury
Chairman of the jury
Margarita Simonyan
RT Editor-in-Chief
In 2005, Margarita Simonyan launched RT, Russia's first round-the-clock, English-language, international TV news channel, which has since expanded to a global TV network providing news, current affairs and documentaries in nine languages, and includes sister multimedia news agency RUPTLY.
Under her helm, RT has extended its reach to more than 800 million TV viewers in over 100 countries around the globe, and is an 11-time Emmy finalist.
In 2013, Margarita Simonyan also became editor-in-chief of Rossiya Segodnya, an international media group that includes radio and news agency Sputnik, which broadcasts in more than 30 languages.
Margarita began her journalism career at a local TV and radio station in the Russian city of Krasnodar, eventually heading up a regional bureau for Russia's largest nationwide broadcaster, VGTRK. As a war correspondent, she reported from the Chechen Republic during the Second Chechen War, from the Beslan School Siege, and from Abkhazia, which earned her several journalism awards.
In 2017, Margarita Simonyan was included on the Forbes Magazine list of the world's most powerful women, more than a dozen spots higher than former U.S. secretary of state and presidential candidate Hillary Clinton.
Margarita has been awarded several national honours of the Russian Federation, including the Order of Alexander Nevsky, the Order 'For Merit to the Fatherland', the Order of Honour, and the Order of Friendship for 'contribution to the development of domestic television'.
Jury composition
Semyon Pegov
Semyon Pegov is a prominent Russian journalist and war correspondent, as well as the founder of the "WarGonzo" project. He has covered conflicts in Syria, Nagorno-Karabakh, and Donbas, and is the author and producer of several documentary films about the events in these regions. Since the start of the special military operation, he has been actively involved in reporting on the combat actions. In recognition of his courage and dedication to his profession, he was awarded the Order of Courage in 2022 by the decree of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Saeed Swerki
Saeed Swerki is the chief correspondent for RT Arabic in the Gaza Strip who, since the channel’s launch, has served as its eyes and voice in this region, bringing events on the ground to millions of viewers. He reported on key episodes in 2012, 2014 and 2021, and continues his work there today.
The current conflict has claimed the lives of tens of thousands of civilians and has become the deadliest for journalists in modern history. Almost constantly on air, Saeed offers viewers an unvarnished picture of what is happening, highlighting the humanitarian catastrophe and the suffering of the civilian population. He is also the central figure in RT Arabic’s documentary on war correspondents, “Gaza Through RT’s Eyes”.
Maksim Al-Turi
His professional journey is a chronicle of the key flashpoints of our time: he witnessed the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, reported on the fighting in Syria, and covered the political upheaval on the Maidan. And from the very first days of the Special Military Operation, Maksim Al-Turi worked on the front line, bringing to the world shocking accounts of the suffering endured by the civilians of Donbass, who had lived under relentless shelling for eight years.