The winners of the True Story Award 2020/21 will be announced in June 2022

The International Reportagen Festival Bern will take place from June 24–26, 2022

The 39 reporters nominated for the True Story Award 2020/21 will have to show a little more patience to learn if they are among the winners: The International Reportagen Festival Bern, at which the True Story Award is presented, has been postponed from this year to June 2022 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. 

Both the festival and the award ceremony thrive on the presence of the nominees, guests, and jury who travel to Bern from over 30 countries. It is this coming together in one place over three days which provides a unique sense of community – as shown by the enthusiastic feedback from the 2019 festival. It’s an opportunity to meet and exchange ideas in the cafés, or while strolling through the squares and under the arcades of Bern’s old town. 

The decision to postpone this year’s event did not come lightly but travel restrictions make it still difficult to come to Switzerland from many parts of the world. We appreciate your comprehension and look forward to welcoming you to the International Reportagen Festival Bern from June 24–26, 2022. The True Story Award ceremony for the 2020/21 nominees will take place on June 24, 2022. 

Due to the postponement, the next edition of the True Story Award, for 2022/23, will once again include works from two years: All texts published between September 1, 2020 to August 31, 2022 will be eligible. These can be submitted from July 1 to September 30, 2022. 

24 to 26 June 2022
International Reportagen Festival Bern featuring the True Story Award Nominees

1 July to 30 September 2022
Call for Submission for the True Story Award 2022/23

All texts published between 1 September 2020 to 31 August 2022 are eligible.

The nominees of the True Story Award 2020/21 have been selected

They will be presented at the International Reportagen Festival Bern from June 24 - 26, 2022.

A total of 39 feature reports in 12 languages are nominated for the True Story Award 2020/21. They were initially published in publications ranging from established media such as El País, Süddeutsche Zeitung Magazin, Medusa or New York Times Magazine to local titles including the Egyptian online medium Masrawy, the French Revue XXI or the Chinese People Magazine. The nominees were chosen from 1179 submissions from 101 countries.
The nominees together with the jury representatives - a total of 60 journalists in all from around the world - will be invited to the International Reportagen Festival Bern in the Swiss capital from June 24-26, 2022. During the festival, the main jury, representing four continents - including Nuruddin Farah from South Africa, China’s Xiaolu Guo and American Jon Lee Anderson - will select the three winning texts, which will be announced at the award’s ceremony on August 20.
The festival including the award show has been shifted from early June to mid-August this year due to the pandemic. By moving the festival to late summer, the organizers want to ensure that as many nominated reporters as possible can travel to Bern.
The True Story Award is the first global journalism prize. Its aim is to make reporters' voices known beyond the borders of their home countries, and in doing so to increase the diversity of perspectives offered in the media. The True Story Award, which will be conferred by an independent foundation, honours reporters writing in 12 languages, who have distinguished themselves by the depth of their research, the quality of their journalism and the story’s social relevance.
SWI swissinfo.ch is the media partner of the True Story Award and the International Reportagen Festival Bern. SWI swissinfo.ch is the international service of the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SBC), providing independent reporting in ten languages.

True Story Award Trailer on Vimeo.