Support and promote
editorial cartoons in Europe
The European Cartoon Award was founded by the European Press Prize and Studio Europa Maastricht in 2019 – the year in which the New York Times decided to stop running editorial cartoons altogether. We award courage and quality in the field of cartooning and foster conversation on the topic of Europe.
Quality journalism is of vital importance to healthy democracies – and cartoonists play a crucial role in this system of checks and balances. Their creations are the hallmark of an open society: often just a single image, they hold up a mirror, make change negotiable and induce public debate.
Cartoons are an important part of an open debate, of questioning both old ideas and introducing new ones. Yet, more than any other form of journalism, cartoons are feeling the strain of the shrinking space for freedom of expression.
To encourage cartoonists to continue their essential task, we have launched the European Cartoon Award, worth €10,000.
