Marius Dragomir Wins the Media and Democracy Karol Jakubowicz Award 2025
Marius Dragomir – the editor of the Media Capture Monitoring Report project - received the Media and Democracy Karol Jakubowicz Award 2025 for the Media Capture Monitoring Report, a research report by the Media and Journalism Research Center and the International Press Institute (co-authored with Zsuzsa Detreköi). A special Media and Democracy Karol Jakubowicz Award 2025 was awarded to Basil Kerski for his book Europejczycy z kantonu Polska (Eng. Europeans from the Canton Poland; Kraków; Budapeszt; Syrakuzy: Wydawnictwo Austeria, 2024).
The Selection Committee awarded Marius Dragomir for the originality and thoroughness of his research, offering a systematic and pioneering perspective on media ownership, regulatory frameworks, and the complex relationships between media and politics. The Media Capture Monitoring Report is a joint initiative of the Media and Journalism Research Center and the International Press Institute, and the report was co-authored with Zsuzsa Detreköi.
Photo 1. Cover of Media Capture Monitoring Report. Vienna, Austria: International Press Institute.
Dr Marius Dragomir is the Director of the Media and Journalism Research Center, a researcher at the University of Santiago de Compostela and a visiting professor at Central European University (CEU) in Vienna, specializing in journalism, research design, advocacy, and media policy. Formerly Director of the Center for Media, Data and Society (CMDS), he has spent over two decades designing and managing global media research initiatives. He leads projects like the Media Influence Matrix, the State Media Monitor, and is the editor of the Media Capture Monitoring Report, a pioneering study of media ownership and political influence. A former journalist in Romania, dr Dragomir also founded Media Power Monitor to explore the intersections of media, business, and politics worldwide.
Photo 2. Dr Marius Dragomir (source).
Moreover, the Selection Committee recognized Europejczycy z kantonu Polska by Basil Kerski with a special Media and Democracy Karol Jakubowicz Award 2025. The collection of essays reflects on the determinants of the crisis of democracy and the responsibility of the media and journalists for shaping perceptions of reality and public sentiment. Kerski highlights the cultural values of Europe as a foundation for redefining the European Community in the face of global geopolitical changes.
Photo 3. Book cover of Kerski B. (2024). Europejczycy z kantonu Polska (Eng. Europeans from the Canton Poland; Kraków; Budapeszt; Syrakuzy: Wydawnictwo Austeria, 2024).
The Media and Democracy Karol Jakubowicz Award continues to recognize outstanding scholarly and journalistic contributions to the study of media systems, media policies, media ethics, and public service media — with a strong emphasis on their societal impact, in Central and Eastern Europe, and beyond. A full list of this year’s nominees can be found here. The Award Ceremony will take place during the 7th Congress of the Polish Communication Association, dedicated to the theme of the human being at the center of contemporary media transformation. The Congress will be held in Katowice (Poland) on September 22–25, 2025, with the Award Ceremony scheduled for the first day of the event.
Dagmara Sidyk-Furman and Michał Głowacki