Since 1998, Freedom House Romania organises a contest for young journalists with the aim to promote quality journalism in a sustainable manner. With the support of NGOs, international organisations and coporations, prizes in five different categories are awarded: "Justice & Rule of Law", "Investigations", "Current Affairs", "Environment" and "Economy".

KAS facilitates both the "Justice & Rule of Law" and "Investigations" awards. The three laureates in the "Justice & Rule of Law" section were Attila Biro (RISE Project), Raluca Pantazi (Hotnews.ro) und Claudio Zamfir (Hotnews.ro). "Many journalists are questioning the impact of their work. With awards like these we can recognise their efforts and show the society that they fulfil an important role as watchdogs of democracy," said Christian Spahr, Head of KAS Media Program South East Europe, at the award ceremony.

Together with Cristina Guseth, Head of Freedom House Romania, and Dan Tăpălagă, Editor/Coordinator of the online portal "Hotnews.ro", he handed in the first prize to Attila Biro. The winner was awarded for two well researched texts about the Romanian constitutional court.

Ionuţ Stănescu (RISE Project) was the first winner in the category "Investigations". He was honoured with the award for an article about illegal activities in the construction industry. Further winners in the same area were Ovidiu Vanghele (Centrul de Investigații Media) und Alexandra Nistoriu (Viața Medicală).

The award ceremony was part of the IX. South East Europe Media Forum(SEEMF). The biggest media conference in South East Europe took place on 5th and 6th November 2015 in Bucharest. The KAS Media Program South East Europe is co-organiser of the event, which welcomes between 250 and 300 experts annually.