Brussels, 24/08/2011 (Agence Europe) - A project co-funded by the European Union seeking to counter Roma stereotypes through film has won a prestigious award from the US-based Society of Professional Journalists. The “Colorful but Colorblind” project brought together 50 Roma and non-Roma journalists to produce a series of 25 short films telling the stories of Roma communities living in central and Eastern Europe. The aim was to encourage a more nuanced coverage of Roma issues and greater participation of Roma journalists in mainstream media operations. The project equally sought to strengthen inter-cultural dialogue and journalists' mutual understanding of one another. The project was chosen for the Sigma Delta Chi Award for excellence in journalism in the digital media presentation (independent) category.
The Colorful but Colorblind project sought to help remedy anti-Roma stereotyping through the creative use of multimedia in reporting minority issues. It brought together journalists, both Roma and non-Roma, and trained them with the help of specialists in multimedia storytelling. The project focused on Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia - all countries with significant Roma populations. It received co-funding of €303,040 from the European Union's Fundamental Rights and Citizenship Programme. (O.L./transl.rt)