MOSCOW, JUNE 21, 2017 – RT, the only Russian TV channel to be nominated five times for the prestigious Emmy awards, hosted Russia’s first ever semi-final round of judging in the News and Documentary categories for the International Emmy Awards. The jury consisted of well-known Russian journalists and media representatives.
Judging to determine which works would advance to the finals of the 2017 International Emmy Awards took place on June 20at RT headquarters in Moscow. The jury consisted of well-known Russian journalists, such as documentary film director and writer Arkadiy Mamontov, Match TV General Producer Tina Kandelaki, and Editor-in-Chief of NTV Alexandra Kosterina, among others.
“We are happy that our colleagues took part in the judging of the ‘television Oscars.’ It was a pleasure to be given this responsibility, and an honor for us to host the Emmy semifinals here at RT. Best of luck to all the nominees!” RT Editor-in-Chief Margarita Simonyan said.
“The semi-final judging events are an integral part of the International Emmy awards competition judging process,” Emmy Judging Director Nathaniel Brendel said. “We are delighted and thankful that RT is hosting a semi-final round of judging in Moscow for the first time.”
The jury members chose the finalists for two categories: ‘News’ and ‘Documentary.’ The award show organizers will announce the finalists of the International Emmy Awards for these categories in mid-August and mid-September respectively.
RT is the only Russian TV channel to be a five-time Emmy nominee. In 2017, On Contact host Chris Hedges scored RT America’s first Daytime Emmy nomination for Outstanding Informative Talk Show Host. In 2016, the channel was nominated for an International Emmy for a series of special reports on the 70th session of the UN General Assembly, and in 2014 for a series of reports on a Guantanamo Bay inmate hunger strike. In 2012, RT was named a finalist for its coverage of the Occupy Wall Street protests in the US, and in 2010 for its coverage of US President Barack Obama’s first visit to Moscow.