Kenyan Journalist, Clifford Derrick, is a finalist for the Rory Peck Awards

Freelance Clifford Derrick was the first cameraman to go into Kenya's Kibera Slum at the height of the post-election chaos and showed how its impoverished residents bore the brunt of the violence. Derrick was attacked because of his work and had to leave Kenya because of safety reasons. He has now relocated in South Africa. The piece is called: Kibera Slum. It was shot in Kenya, January 2008 - Commissioned and broadcast by Al Jazeera English

The Rory Peck Awards is an international competition, the only showcase in the world to recognise the work of freelance cameramen and camerawomen in TV newsgathering and current affairs worldwide. The Awards ceremony is a moving celebration which honours their skill, initiative and, above all, their courage. For freelancers in regions where it is difficult to operate, this competition recognises the value of their work, giving them the opportunity to show the world what is happening in their countries.

The Rory Peck Awards benefit from a joint effort by the international newsgathering industry and is produced with support from APTN, BBC News, BDL Autocue, BSkyB, CBC, CNN, Channel 4 TV, Globecast, ITV News, NBC News, Neon, Reuters TV and SKY News. It is attended by senior broadcasters, freelancers, bureau chiefs, commissioning editors, diplomats and journalists. The Awards generate increasingly wide media coverage including two television programmes dedicated to the Rory Peck finalists: BBC World’s “In the Firing Line” and Channel 4 TV’s “The Slot”.

There are three Awards and one Prize. These are:
•    The Impact Award, sponsored by Sony -  honours freelance news footage which raises humanitarian issues and has had an impact internationally or contributed to a change in perception or policy
•    The Rory Peck Award for News - honours freelance coverage of on-the-day news, where the focus is on the immediacy of the story
•    The Rory Peck Award for Features - honours freelance news features: in-depth pieces which look beyond the immediacy of a new story. 
•    The Martin Adler Prize, sponsored by Atex - honours a freelancer who has told, or played a vital part in telling a significant news story. The prize is in the gift of the Trustees of The Rory Peck Trust

The Rory Peck Awards is the main fund-raiser for The Rory Peck Trust, the charity which exists to support freelance newsgatherers and their families worldwide in times of need, and to promote their welfare and safety.

Clifford Derrick has worked as a journalist since 2001 and specializes in investigative reporting. In 2003 he was named Cameraman of the Year at the Kenyan Union of Journalists Awards. In 2004 he was CNN African Journalist of the Year. In 2005, he received several awards from the Kenyan Union of Journalists including Journalist of the Year, Investigative Journalist, Crime Reporter, Children Rights Reporter and Electronic Journalist of the Year. Clifford has a diploma in Journalism and Public Relations from Kenya Polytechnic and a Post Graduate Diploma in Media Management from Rhodes University in South Africa. He is currently based in Johannesburg, where he is studying for a masters degree in journalism and media studies at the University of the Witwatersrand.

Other Rory Peck Award finalists are:

Tim Hetherington, British
The Other War / Shot in Afghanistan, October 2007 - Commissioned and broadcast by ABC Nightline

Vaughan Smith, British - Grenadiers Fighting in Helmand   / Shot in Afghanistan, September 2007
Self funded. Broadcast by The Frontline Club Web Log / BBC Newsnight

Rodrigo Vazquez, Argentinean-British
Inside Hamas / Shot in the Palestinian Authority Gaza, August-October 2007
Stampede Limited for Channel 4 International - Broadcast by Channel 4

Abdullahi Farah Duguf, Somali
Two weeks in Mogadishu / Shot in Somalia, September 2007 - Commissioned and broadcast by ITN / Channel 4 News

Subina Shrestha, Nepali
Down the Irrawaddy Delta / Shot in Myanmar, May 2008 - Commissioned and broadcast by Al Jazeera English

"D" and Ginny Stein, Zimbabwean and Australian
Mugabe's Calling Card / Shot in South Africa and Zimbabwe, May-June 2008
Commissioned and broadcast by SBS TV Dateline

Jung In Taek and Han Yong Ho, South Korean
Korea: Out of the North  / Shot in North Korea, China, Laos, Thailand and South Korea, August 2007-February 2008 - Commissioned by Chosun Ilbo newspaper, South Korea - Broadcast by BBC

Jezza Neumann, British
Undercover in Tibet  / Shot in Tibet, China, Nepal and India, April-August 2007
True Vision Productions for Channel 4 - Broadcast by Channel 4

Information supplied by Elisabet Cantenys
For further information contact: awards@rorypecktrust.org or visit www.rorypecktrust.org