MAJOR AWARD FOR CNN'S DAN RIVERS

Bangkok-based CNN correspondent Dan Rivers has won the prestigious International Television Reporting award at the annual George Polk Awards which honours special achievements in journalism. The awards are regarded as one of the most coveted honours in United States journalism, although the only entry requirement is that nominated stories must have been seen in the U.S.
Rivers, along with producers Kit Swartz, Kocha Orlan and Theerasak Nitipiched, will collect the gong for last February's coverage of abuses against Rohingya refugees by military forces in Thailand. In "World's Untold Stories: A Forgotten People" the CNN crew detailed allegations of shocked tourists who said they witnessed members of the Thai military abusing the Rohingya on a popular beach. The team also uncovered exclusive photos of scores of boat refugees being cut adrift after being towed far out to sea. While being interview by Rivers, Thailand's Prime Minister acknowledged that the wrongdoing likely took place and states the government would not allow such acts in the future. The multi award-winning reports can be seen here; these reports have also won a prestigious Amnesty International media award.
Winners of the awards are selected by a jury of Long Island University faculty members and alumni from entries submitted by journalists and news organisations, and by a panel of journalism teachers, editors and reporters, including some former award recipients.
Long Island University has administered the Awards since their inception in 1949. The Awards were established in memory of George Polk, a CBS reporter who was killed while covering the civil war in Greece in 1948.
The Awards will be presented at a ceremony in New York in April.