Global News Media Innovators Shine at 2025 Digital Media Awards Worldwide.

The World Association of News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) is proud to announce the winners of the 2025 Digital Media Awards Worldwide, recognising outstanding innovation in digital news media across Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Americas.

Selected from 674 entries across five regions (South Asia, APAC, Africa, Europe, and the Americas), the awards, made during WAN-IFRA's World News Media Congress taking place in Kraków, demonstrate how publishers leverage digital tools to enhance journalism and engage audiences.

“While we talk a lot about the challenges facing news publishers, WAN-IFRA's Digital Media Awards are an opportunity to spotlight exciting innovations around the world,” said Vincent Peyrègne, WAN-IFRA CEO. “The winners of our international competition are living proof that professional news organisations are on the rise. There is no shortage of innovations in the news and a lot to be learned from these inspiring projects.”

2025 Digital Media Awards Worldwide Winners

Best Use of AI in the Newsroom

Best Data Visualisation

Reuters, United Kingdom – Buildings Wrapped in Solid Gasoline
Reuters investigated a fatal Valencia high-rise fire using 3D visuals, expert analysis and simulations to examine the role of flammable cladding, and highlight ongoing safety risks. Explore it here.

Best News Website or Digital Platform Relaunch

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Germany — FAZ.NET Relaunch
FAZ.NET's redesign introduced personalised content, dynamic paywalls, and real-time customisation, significantly boosting engagement and subscriptions. Watch the video.

Best Newsletter

The Telegraph, United Kingdom – How to Become a Millionaire
A six-week personal finance series offering actionable advice on budgeting, investing, pensions, and tax. Featuring interactivity and journalist participation, it launched during UK economic uncertainty and strengthened audience trust. Discover the project.

Best Digital Subscription or Reader Revenue Project

South China Morning Post, Hong Kong – SCMP Plus
Launched in June 2024, SCMP Plus offers exclusive China-focused content, successfully attracting and retaining a high-value audience of business leaders and global readers. Learn more about the project.

Best Use of AI in Revenue Strategy

United Daily News, Taiwan – The Triple Impact of AI
By integrating AI in advertising, newsroom workflows, and platform engagement, United Daily News achieved marked improvements in click-through rates, conversions, and user interaction. More information.

Best Fact-Checking Project

Chequeado, Argentina – Promesas Chequeadas
This project tracks President Javier Milei’s campaign promises, reaching over a million people in its first week and becoming a vital accountability tool. More about the project.

Best Use of Video

Verdens Gang (VG), Norway – VG’s Video Revolution
VG redefined U.S. election coverage with mobile-first, interactive live streams, driving a 500% rise in video views and significant growth among younger audiences. Discover how they did it.

Best in Audience Engagement

Grupo El Comercio, Peru – Premios Somos 2024
This interactive voting campaign celebrating Peruvian gastronomy led to 51,000 new user registrations and a 200% engagement increase. More information on the campaign.

Best Innovative Digital Product

Daily Maverick, South Africa – Manifesto MAYHEM!
A gamified platform turning political manifestos into collectible cards, making key election promises more accessible, especially to young voters. Here is the video of the project.

Best Digital Advertising Product or Initiative

The Hindu, India – The Hindu Made of Chennai
Celebrating Chennai’s 385th anniversary, this 40-day multi-platform campaign blended culture, community, and entertainment to deepen audience connection. Here is the video of the campaign.

Best Use of Audio or Podcast

Podium Podcast: PRISA MEDIA, Chile — Necesito Poder Respirar: La Vida de Jorge González
This immersive podcast combined rare recordings, personal interviews, and original music, to tell the story of Chilean music icon Jorge González. It topped Spotify charts and surpassed 700,000 streams in its first month.

See here for more information about the winners and their projects.

Jury

The judges, made up of an international jury of distinguished media experts, gave weight to effective strategies, with a strong commitment to a journalism that informs, engages, and serves communities around the world.

Chris Janz CEO, Capital Brief (Australia); WAN-IFRA Expert Panel member / Gregor Waller Consultant, Digital Age Consulting (Germany); WAN-IFRA Expert Panel member / Angie Drobnic Holan Director, International Fact-Checking Network (USA) / Prof. Rosental Alves Founder and director of the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas (USA); Professor at University of Texas at Austin / Claudio E. Cabrera Vice President of Audience at The Athletic, USA / Nikita Roy Founder, Newsroom Robots Lab (USA/ Canada) / Chia-Lun Huang Director: Talent Sustainabilty@CW, CommonWealth Magazine, (Taiwan) / Cherilyn Ireton Executive Director World Editors Forum, WAN-IFRA (UK) / Clara Soteras Head of Innovation and Digital Strategy, AMIC (Spain) / Fergus BellFounder & CEO, Fathm; Executive Director, Syli (UK) / Cristina Tardáguila Senior Research Consultant, Digital Democracy Institute of the Americas (USA) / Valérie ArnouldDeputy Director, Digital Revenue Network, WAN-IFRA (France) / Christophe IsraëlJournalist; Consultant in digital strategy, change management, AI (Switzerland) / Maylis Chevalier Strategy and Innovation Consultant (Spain) / Robert Walker-Smith Head of Revenue Knight x LMA BloomLab, Local Media Association (USA) / Robb MontgomeryAward-winning filmmaker, Textbook Author, Mobile Journalism Professor (Germany) / Kuek Ser Kuang Keng Founder, Data-N (Malaysia) / Rafael Höhr Founding Partner, Prodigioso Volcán (Spain) / John M. Humenik Programme Director, Local Media Association | Local Media Foundation Family & Independent Media Sustainability Lab (FIMS) AI Community Journalism Lab (USA) / Ismael Nafría Journalist, writer and digital media consultant (Spain) / Claudia Báez Consultant in digital and AI innovation; leader in social impact entrepreneurship (Colombia) / John Hall Senior Editor, Storyful (UK)