Medical Observer Wins Asian Award for Editorial Excellence

In what proved to be a David-beats-Goliath case for Philippine media, Medical Observer became the first Philippine publication to be recognized by the Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) in its annual Awards for Editorial Excellence held June 6 at the American Club, Hong Kong.

    The magazine's special issue on depression and suicide in April 2001, titled "The Mask of Sorrow," ran away with the Best Front Cover award, relegating media giant and consistent winner TIME Magazine Asia to second place with its cover on "How Japan Sees the World." It was the first time Medical Observer joined the awards, which drew entries from such multinational publications as: 

Medical Observer editor-in-chief Ding Generoso receives the award for Best Cover from freelance broadcast journalist Karen Koh and MJT Rowse of Invest Hong Kong at the 2002 Society of Publishers in Asia Awards for Editorial Excellence June 6 at the American Club, Hong Kong. The magazine's 'The Mask of Sorrow" (April 2001) issue bested TIME Magazine Asia's "How the World Sees Japan."

Time, Newsweek, Far Eastern Economic Review, Forbes, Fortune, Asian Wall Street Journal, The Economist, International Herald Tribune, and Business Week.

    The award was received by publisher Jena Fetalino and editor-in-chief Ding Generoso in behalf of graphic artist Jerico Martinez, who conceptualized, designed, and executed the cover. In accepting the award Generoso said in jest: "We never realized that writing about depression could give us so much joy."

    Martinez, a University of Santo Tomas fine arts graduate, has only been with the ten-year-old Medical Observer for two years.

    Another Philippine publication, the Philippine Daily Inquirer, was cited honorable mention in the Best Opinion category for Randy David's "Understanding Poverty."

Jeco Martinez designed the winning cover

    Other big winners included Far Eastern Economic Review for Excellence in Magazines, Asian Wall Street Journal for Excellence in Newspapers, Newsweek Asia for Best Editorial Team, and TIME Magazine Asia for Excellence in Features.

    The 2002 SOPA Awards drew a total of 244 entries from Hindi- Chinese-, and English-language publications from all over Asia.

    SOPA was established in 1982 to foster unity among Asian publishers and regional representatives of foreign publishers. It established the awards in 1999 to recognize editorial excellence in both traditional and nontraditional media and encourage editorial vitality in the region.