Veteran photojournalist Hsieh San-tai wins Excellence in Journalism Special Contribution Award

The 25th Taipei-based Excellence in Journalism Award Foundation officially announced its shortlisted entries today, alongside the recipient of the highly anticipated Special Contribution Award for Journalism. Among numerous outstanding media professionals and works, this year's Special Contribution Award was bestowed upon veteran photojournalist Hsieh San-tai. Having dedicated four decades to the field of news photography, Hsieh has used his lens to witness decades of turbulence, democratic transition, and generational shifts in Taiwanese society. His award is well-deserved and once again highlights the irreplaceable core value and historical record-keeping function of documentary photography in news communication.

In addition to announcing the Special Contribution Award recipient, the shortlist for the various categories of this year's Excellence in Journalism Awards was also unveiled simultaneously today. Among them, the national news agency, Central News Agency (CNA), delivered an impressive performance in this year's competition, securing a total of five nominations. This demonstrates CNA's strong capability to steadfastly uphold rigorous journalistic professional ethics and deeply cultivate major issue reporting despite facing a rapidly changing news environment and the impact of the digital wave. These five nominations are not only an affirmation of the efforts made by CNA reporters and editorial teams on the front lines, but also the best endorsement of a traditional news agency's value in safeguarding public interest and in-depth reporting.

Hsieh San-tai's photographic career almost completely overlaps with the developmental trajectory of Taiwan's contemporary democratic movement. Over the past four decades, he has carried his camera through streets and alleys, protest sites, and every corner of society, capturing countless classic images filled with tension and historical depth. From the social movements, labor protests, and farmers' movements before the lifting of martial law, to subsequent party alternations and social transformations, Hsieh's lens is not merely a simple visual record; it has also become a visual archive of Taiwanese society's pursuit of freedom and democracy. His works not only possess high artistic and journalistic value, but also raise public awareness of disadvantaged groups and social justice, profoundly influencing the direction of Taiwanese photojournalism.

Since its inception, the Excellence in Journalism Award has been regarded as one of the highest honors in Taiwan's journalism community. Its founding purpose is to encourage journalism peers to adhere to professional ethics, promote in-depth investigative reporting, elevate news quality, and exert a positive supervisory and guiding force on society. In the current digital age, where misinformation is rampant and self-media and algorithms dominate web traffic, traditional mainstream media face unprecedented financial pressures and survival challenges. However, the existence and selection process of the Excellence in Journalism Awards serve precisely to remind the public that in-depth investigative reports and documentary photography—which require vast amounts of time, manpower, and resources to uncover the truth—remain indispensable cornerstones of a healthy democratic society.

CNA's five nominations in this year's Excellence in Journalism Awards reflect the persistence of journalism practitioners toward their original journalistic intentions amidst a difficult environment. As a national news agency, CNA has long shouldered the heavy responsibility of providing objective, balanced, timely, and in-depth domestic and international news. Facing the pressures of transformation in the new media era, CNA has not only maintained agility in delivering real-time information, but has also continuously innovated and broken through in special reports, investigative interviews, and visual storytelling. This nomination is not only an encouragement to individual reporters or specific works, but a collective affirmation of the entire CNA team's long-standing spirit of objectivity, neutrality, and deep on-site reporting.

With the announcement of the 25th Excellence in Journalism Award shortlist, the focus of Taiwan's journalism community has turned to the upcoming final selection and award ceremony. Hsieh San-tai's award and the nominations of outstanding media outlets like CNA jointly outline the diverse and resilient landscape of contemporary Taiwanese journalism. While celebrating these outstanding achievements, it also prompts people to reflect once again on the profound significance of press freedom and professional reporting for a democratic society. It is hoped that through the presentation of these exceptional works, the general public can be led to rediscover the value of journalism and offer greater support and encouragement to media workers who toil quietly on the front lines.

(Source: Central News Agency)