Cheap At Half The Price

Via Gawain, we find that the EU have been 'nudging' the European media with the EU Health Prize for Journalists.

The aim being ...

... about getting journalists around the EU to write articles for their respective outlets that promote the EU line.

The EU Health Prize for Journalists is awarded to stimulate high-quality journalism that raises awareness of issues related to healthcare and patients' rights. The Prize is part of the "Europe for patients" campaign, highlighting 12 health policy initiatives. All these are bound by a common goal: better healthcare for all in Europe.

Or as John Dalli puts it "to stimulate high-quality journalism, with particular focus on the European Dimension" So successful is it that 358 hacks from the 27 submitted almost 500 articles. Given the prizes amount to 13,000 EUR that is bloody good value for money at 26 EUR per published article.

Indeed it is.

As you might expect, there was a special category set aside for articles which address smoking. Or rather, the stopping of it. The short list is here, and the prize winner concerned a day in the life of a Polish dentist.

Isn't it nice to see another way that your taxes are used to denormalise you, eh? This time by effectively buying column inches on your behalf. Oh yeah, and did I mention that John Dalli, who initiates all this stuff as the relevant Commissioner - and like all of the anti-smoking organisations he bows to - is entirely unelected?

Or, as Gawain points out.

Look, if the BMJ or some other Health publication wants to run a Journalism prize across Europe, not problem at all. But it is wrong for such an award to be sponsored by the EU, with taxpayers money.

Quite.