MOSCOW, APRIL 26, 2016 – RT took home the People’s Voice Award Webby – the leading international award honoring excellence on the Internet – in an open online vote. Webby Awards online voters chose RT social media platforms over those of the BBC News, ABC News, NBC Nightly News and the New York Times.
RT won in the Social / News & Information category for its overall social media presence, as represented by a series of digital projects including platforms on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Soundcloud and Coub, as well as the RT Play Facebook portal, which offers a selection of infotainment videos with infographics elements.
“To be nominated in the first place means we're doing things right. To win the People's Voice award – and to win it by a landslide – means our online community is truly engaged,” says Kirill Karnovich-Valua, head of RT’s Online Projects. “And we thank every person who voted and brought us this victory! We will continue to focus on product quality, innovation and bringing our audiences the news and perspectives they would not otherwise get elsewhere.”
RT is the most watched news TV news network on YouTube, with 3.3 billion views across its channels. RT offers interactive media content accessible via its enhanced RT News mobile app, the RT Plugin community app incorporating an enhanced social network for viewers, and the Periscope live video streaming app. Additionally, RT is one of the first TV news outlets globally to have started news content production in the 360-degree, panoramic (VR) video format and the first among TV news channels to live-stream news on YouTube in this format as well.
"We have an incredibly talented social media team which gets the full credit for the victory,” commented Ivor Crotty, head of RT’s Social Media group. “Our team is multi-task-oriented, and social media is their environment: they are as comfortable with Twitter and YouTube as they are with 360 vids, GIFs, VR and many other trends and formats. Now we know that RT's social media strategy is recognized at the very top, Webby level. So, hats off to the team.”
The Webby Awards, “the Internet’s highest honor,” according to The New York Times, annually recognizes the world’s best digital projects: websites, videos, mobile apps and social media campaigns. The jury includes 1,000+ professionals of the Web and media markets, including Twitter founder Biz Stone, Huffington Post co-founder and editor-in-chief Arianna Huffington, and actor and director Kevin Spacey. The list of winners over the years includes projects like YouTube, Google, BBC, CNN and Facebook.