The bTV Media Group journalists sent off 2018 with a series of awards for their high professionalism and dedication to their work.

Petar Bakardjiev is this year's winner of the most prestigious sports journalism award The Ekserovi Brothers Ekserovi. The reporter and host of the sportscasts on bTV received the Golden Axe statuette and dedicated the award in memory of the long-standing Dean of the Faculty of Journalism and Mass Communication at the Sofia University, Prof. Dr. Veselin Dimitrov.

At the end of 2018, for another year, the prestigious awards of the Worlds and Colors media competition were also bestowed, three of which were deserved by journalists of bTV Media Group. Before Noon host Desislava Stoyanova received the special award for journalistic contribution to the issue of environmental protection, and host and artist Miroslava Katsarova from Jazz FM won the Svetlana Plashokova award in the Radio category. Also awarded was Svetoslav Ivanov, host of 120 Minutes, in the Television category, for an overall public response to the editions of the show.

For the second consecutive year, bTV News reporter Kristina Gazieva is the winner of the grand prize from a competition dedicated to the fight against Hepatitis C. The distinction is for the objective coverage of the patients' problems.

The whole bTV News team was honoured by the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry as Media of the Year, for objective coverage of the current economic issues. The news anchor and host of the emblematic consumer segment Read the Label, Bilyana Gavazova, accepted the award of the 25^th Annual Awards of the Chamber for achievements in economics.

bTV News reporter Desislava Rizova and cameraman Ivan Filchev were awarded with Valya Krushkinna - Journalism for the People awards for their work in the name of the citizens. Desislava Rizova received an award in the TV category for her story Elections Country-Style, while Elections Russian-Style, of which she was co-author, earned an award for Ivan Filchev in the Filming Journalist category.

The entire editorial of bTV News was honoured in December for encouraging reading and for their contribution to the increased interest of Sofia residents in the rich book and digital resources of the Sofia Library, as well as for promoting the cultural priorities of the capital. On that same day, Viktoria Petrova, Anton Heikimyan and Svetoslav Ivanov, Teodora Encheva and Venelin Petkov were awarded for their high language culture at the annual awards for Bulgarian language of the Center for Analysis of Political and Journalist Speech at the Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski.

One of the most distinguished journalists on healthcare and social topics – Mariya Vankova, earned the recognition of her colleagues from bTV News for her professionalism in 2018 at the traditional Reporter of the Year awards. Margarita Stefanova from Vratza was singled out as correspondent of the year, Lyuben Katsarov was voted the best cameraman, and poducer of the year became Veselina Petrakieva. Number one video editor for the second consecutive year is Kaloyana Klimentova.

The host who changes people's fates in bTV’s social project Home Makeover - Maria Sylvester, won the Woman of the Year award in the Television category at the 13^th edition of the competition. The show was also awarded with the special Socially-Responsible Television Project award at the annual b2b Media ceremony.

bTV Media Group also holds the Green Media award for 2018, for the eighth and so far most successful edition of the initiative Let's Clean Bulgaria Together.

Contacts:

bTV Media Group
Sales department
Sofia 1463
Bulgaria sq. No. 1
National Palace of Culture, 11th floor
Тel. (+359) 2 9176 800
Тel. (+359) 2 9156 564
Fax: (+359) 2 9176 886
e-mail: [email protected]