A team of pioneering European media innovators from Spain, Norway, Portugal, Slovakia, and Hungary will form IPI’s Media Innovation Europe jury. They will choose the next generation of media change makers that will take part in IPI’s six-month accelerator programme. The Transition Accelerator will deliver the skills to help carry newsrooms through the digital transition.

Want to be part of IPI’s Transition Accelerator? Apply now: applications close on October 28, 2022.

The jury includes key experts from Europe in the field. They’re pioneering innovators, long-time media managers and prize-winning journalists and editors eager to help build the future of journalism. Their profiles reflect the different ways journalists are rebuilding the industry – and they’ve already made a difference, pushing the industry forward as we redefine journalism and media for the needs of today. 

The jury will be chaired by Spain’s Virginia Perez Alonso, editor-in-chief at Público, one of Spain’s leading new media voices built around principle-guided journalism and engaged membership. The other jury members are:

  • Espen Egil Hansen, former editor-and-chief and CEO of Aftenposten, former editor-in-chief of VG Nett and key player in Norway on the complex digital intersection of journalism, innovation, strategy, technology, management, communication and business.
  • Tomáš Bella, who co-founded and is now the head of digital at Dennik N, a successful Slovak independent start-up focused on long-form journalism.
  • Catarina Carvalho, who co-founded Portugal’s leading local news startup, Mensagem de Lisboa.
  • Veronika Munk, who is founding editor-in-chief and current head of content at Telex, a key independent online voice in Hungary.

“ Newsroom innovation is the ability to open minds and change work processes so that the reader ends up receiving excellent and unique journalistic work” – Virginia Alonso, Jury Chair. 

Brief background of the Transition Accelerator jury members

Virginia Perez Alonso, jury chair (Spain): Spanish journalist and editor-in-chief at Público. Prior to joining Público , she served as deputy editor-in-chief at El Mundo. Previously, she was the deputy editor-in-chief at Grupo 20 Minutos, where she led the digital transformation of the group in the area of publishing. Her integration of the newsrooms has become a successful example to follow in the sector. She also worked in the past with media outlets La Voz de Galicia, EFE, Radiovoz and Cinco Días. She received the iRedes Prize in 2012 “for her understanding of the cultural transformation required in newsrooms”. 

Espen Egil Hansen (Norway): Norwegian newspaper editor and publisher. Currently, he serves as international advisor at JP/Politikens Hus. From 2013 until 2019, he was editor-in-chief and CEO of Norway’s largest newspaper, Aftenposten. Prior to that, he served as editor-in-chief and managing editor at VG Nett. He was on the board of 20minutos, Schibsted, E24.no and INMA. Hansen works predominantly on the digital intersection between journalism, innovation, strategy, technology, management, communication and business. 

Tomáš Bella (Slovakia): co-founder and head of digital at Denník N, an independent Slovak daily paper focused on long-form journalism that also develops open-source software for publishers. Previously, he was editor-in-chief of daily SME and CEO at paywall software company Piano Media. Bella holds an MA in journalism from Comenius University in Bratislava. 

Catarina Carvalho (Portugal): journalist and co-founder of Mensagem de Lisboa, a Lisbon-based local news startup. She was previously the executive director of Diário de Notícias where she led the newspaper’s digital transformation. Carvalho has led different newsrooms for 20 years including Volta ao Mundo, Evasoes, Noticias Magazine and Delas.pt. From 2020 until 2021 Carvalho worked as a visiting researcher at the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. She is doing a PhD in Journalism from Nova University Lisbon. 

Veronika Munk (Hungary): award-winning Hungarian journalist with 20 years of experience and the founding editor-in-chief and current head of content at the Hungarian independent online news daily Telex. She was deputy editor-in-chief at Index, Hungary’s largest online news daily from where she and more than 80 colleagues resigned in July 2020 due to external political influence on the newspaper. Munk holds a PhD in media studies. At different times, she has taught courses on journalism at ELTE University and Romedia Foundation.

Questions? Email [email protected].