Entries from three publishers – SPH Media, the South China Morning Post and Bisnis Indonesia – accounted for 20 of the 48 honours in this year’s Asian Media Awards.
They were presented at a dinner at the Conrad Singapore Orchard, as part of this year’s Asian Media Leaders Summit.
Judges awarded five golds and one silver to SCMP, while Straits Times publisher SPH Media took home three gold and seven silver. Bisnis Indonesia earned five awards, with one silver in the open competition and four trophies in the new ‘small and medium’ (SM) category.
In what is a truly regional competition, there were 228 entries from 41 media organisations spanning 17 countries. Besides Bisnis Indonesia, SM companies that won overall gold and silver awards were Kumparan, the Japan Times and Wildtype Media.
The small/medium category was created for companies with annual revenue of less than US$10 million (A$15.41 million) to shine a spotlight on their innovation and creativity when competing with the better-resourced media firms. This year’s competition also celebrated first-time winners including ARIJ and Project Multatuli.
Award winners 2025
Best Revenue Diversification Project:
Gold– Morning Studio by South China Morning Post;
Silver– From showroom to sales: The Car Expo 2025 by SPH Media;
Winner small/medium media category– New Energy Vehicle Summit 2025 by kumparan.
Best Young Audience Initiative:
Gold– Hangout Noraebang by Kumparan;
Silver– thrive by The Business Times by SPH Media;
Winner small/medium media category– OKAZ Esports by Okaz Organization for Press & Publication.
Best Community Service Project:
Gold– Dementia Care with Equity: Leverage Media Power in Taipei Metro Area by United Daily News;
Silver– Ek Ped Ek Zindagi by DB Corp;
Winner small/medium media category– Project Blue 2025 by Business Today Magazine.
Best Advertising Initiative:
Gold– Building Singapore by SPH Media, Content Lab;
Silver– Singapore Dreamin’ by SPH Media, Content Lab;
Winner small/medium media category– Xplore by Bisnis Indonesia.
Best Cover Design:
Gold– Resized Election Special issue from Frontline by The Hindu;
Silver– Dangerous Drugs in Vape by Star Media Group;
Small/medium media– Perang Karya Lewat Kecerdasan Buatan by Bisnis Indonesia.
Best Business and Financial News Story:
Gold– Unemployment in China by South China Morning Post;
Silver– Untung Buntung Eksportasi Nikel RI ke China by Bisnis Indonesia;
Winner small/medium media category– eFishery Series by Dealstreetasia Pte Ltd.
Best Technology News Story:
Gold– Punggol Digital District: Singapore’s blueprint for future smart districts by SPH Media, The Straits Times;
Silver– The Equalizers by Wildtype Media Group;
Small/medium media– Manuver Drone Gesit & Imersif by Bisnis Indonesia.
Best Climate Impact Story:
Gold– Rising Tides: Lessons from Pacific Islands’ Climate Survival by Mediacorp Pte Ltd;
Silver– Boiling Point by The Japan Times;
Small/medium media– Cyberstorm: “Petroleum Accounts” Driving Climate Disinformation by ARIJ.
Best Health News Story:
Gold– “The Lord of the Rings” and Young People’s Heart Disease by Kompas Daily Newspaper;
Silver– Medical Mysteries by SPH Media, The Straits Times;
Small/medium media– MediStory – Stories of Medicine by Znews.
Best General News Infographics:
Gold– Bear attacks are rising in Japan. Aging hunters are on the frontlines by Reuters (Asia);
Silver– Gazans survive among unexploded bombs by Reuters (Asia);
Small/medium media– Unification Epic by VietnamPlus, Vietnam News Agency.
Best Health Infographics:
Gold– Goodnight from my little bedroom: Bedtime stories of Hong Kong’s helpers by South China Morning Post;
Silver– How the Mpox virus spreads, mutates, and attacks humans by Reuters (Asia);
Small/medium media– I Had Autism This Whole Time, But No One Realised by Our Grandfather Story.
Best Climate Infographics:
Gold– The Invasion of Plastics by Star Media Group;
Silver– Awakening Asia’s Sleeping Giant, Lake Toba – How climate change is affecting volcanoes by SPH Media, Berita Harian Singapura.
Best News Photography:
Gold– Wrecked on the rocks by South China Morning Post;
Silver– City in the clouds by South China Morning Post;
Small/medium media– Antusiasme Warga Sambut Pemimpin Baru by Media Indonesia.
Best Lifestyle Photography:
Gold– Blooming sea jellies by SPH Media, The Straits Times;
Silver– Marvellous morsels. Food like you’ve never seen it before by SPH Media, The Straits Times;
Small/medium media– Indonesia’s Unity in Diversity by kumparan.
Best Human Interest Photography:
Gold– Still living a subdivided life by South China Morning Post;
Silver– Brazilian surfer Gabriel Medina during Paris 2024 Olympic Games by Agence France-Presse;
Small/medium media– Mengaji dalam Senyap by Bisnis Indonesia.
Best in Climate Photography:
Gold– Monsoon flooding in Roshi village, Nepal by Agence France-Presse;
Silver– Harvest Moon thrills S’pore skygazers by SPH Media, The Straits Times;
Small/medium media– The Butterfly Effect: When a Storied Genus Heads Toward Extinction by Project Multatuli.
Pictured: DealStreet correspondent Marsya Nabile receives an award for its eFishery expose (photo DealStreet)