Hans Ströbitzer Prize 2025: Honor for young journalism in St. Pölten!

Hans Ströbitzer Prize 2025: Honor for young journalism in St. Pölten!

On Monday evening, May 20, 2025, the Hans Ströbitzer Prize 2025 was awarded in St. Pölten. The Press Association of the Diocese of St. Pölten honored five outstanding young and young-at-heart journalists from Austria. The prize, which was offered for the third time this year, is intended to promote journalistic work that reflects an ethical and respectful approach to the topics and people that come into focus from a Christian worldview. The winners were selected by an independent jury, which examined the nominees' access to journalists. Pressverein St. Pölten describes the prize as an instrument to promote critical, respectful and humane reporting.

The life's work of Hans Winkler, one of the best-known names in Austrian journalism, was honored with the honorary award. Winkler, long-time head of the Vienna editorial team of the Kleine Zeitung, was honored in his acceptance speech as a “journalistic authority” and master of the column. He is known not only for his journalistic work, but also for his role as a member of the independent expert council for integration at the Federal Chancellery. Winkler published the book “The Challenge of Migration” in 2015, in which he presented ten theses on migration policy. In his acceptance speech, he humorously called the award an “inevitable sign of aging.”

Awards for young talents

The first main prize went to Ines Schaberger, who is known for her work at Swiss broadcaster SRF and for her podcast. The second main prize winner, Kathrin Pollak-Greilberger from ORF-ZiB, was also recognized for her innovative YouTube formats. Emanuela Sutter from Exxpress received the third main prize for her journalistic work in the area of ​​life protection. The sponsorship award was awarded to Philipp Grabner from the Niederösterreichische Nachrichten (NÖN), who was honored for his ability to present complex issues in an understandable way. At the award ceremony, jury chairwoman Gudula Walterskirchen recalled the founding of the press association 151 years ago, which bears the name of Prof. Hans Ströbitzer, the former editor-in-chief of the “Niederösterreichische Nachrichten”.

The Hans Ströbitzer Prize is supported by the private bank Schoellerbank and the Austrian Media Academy, which further underlines the importance of the awards. This award aims to help a new generation of journalists overcome the challenges of the digital age and assert themselves in a rapidly changing media environment.

Contextualization of the current challenges in journalism

The award ceremony took place in an environment in which quality journalism is under increasing pressure. The Initiative Quality in Journalism (IQ) association noted at a three-country meeting in the DACH region that the challenges for journalism have increased due to digital developments and the spread of alternative media. These alternative media have been gaining attention since the coronavirus pandemic and are causing a divide in the information landscape. IQ Journalism emphasizes that self-critical reflection and political support for quality journalism are of great importance in order to ensure the credibility of traditional media.

Given these dynamics, the Hans Ströbitzer Prize is a sign that committed and talented journalists can continue to find recognition. Honoring their work not only creates the necessary space for critical and respectful journalism, but also inspires the future generation of media professionals.