The jury for Franceinfo's Visa d'Or Digital Information Award, which met on Thursday, August 25, chose to award the prize to "Africa's Rising Cities," produced by Max Bearak, Júlia Ledur, and Dylan Moriarty for The Washington Post website.
This investigation highlights the rapid urbanization in Africa, where dozens of cities will join the ranks of the world's largest megacities by 2100. Several recent studies predict that by the end of this century, Africa will be the only continent to experience population growth. Thirteen of the world's 20 largest urban areas will be in Africa—compared to only two today—as will more than a third of the world's population.
The jury chose to reward "Africa's Rising Cities" for the importance of the subject covered by the Washington Post, the diversity of angles chosen, and the richness of the treatment, both in the power of the testimonies and in the use of images and cartographic data on a global issue that transcends the borders of the African continent.
The 2022 jury was composed of Samuel Bollendorff (photographer and director), Christophe Champin (Deputy Director of RFI in charge of New Media), Agnès Chauveau (Deputy Director General of INA), Benoît Leprince (First Editorial Secretary at Le Journal du Dimanche), Lucas Menget (Deputy Editorial Director at franceinfo), Eric Scherer (Director of the MediaLab for Information and International Affairs at France Télévisions), and Gaïa Tripoli (Photo Editor at The New York Times).
With a prize of €8,000, the Visa d'Or for Digital Information is organized by the Visa pour l'Image Festival in Perpignan with the support of public service audiovisual media: France Médias Monde, France Télévisions, Radio France, and the Institut national de l'audiovisuel (INA). In the face of the constant flow of information, this award recognizes a project, content, or digital creation—virtual reality, interactivity, editorialized video posted on social media, etc.—that stands out for its choice and original treatment of a current topic and its use of new multimedia tools.
Source: press release