The Star’s Sabah bureau brought home two journalism awards, including a gold prize, from the Kinabalu Press Awards 2022 on Sunday.

Reporter Stephanie Lee Shao Fen was awarded the gold prize for the Business and Economic Reporting Award (English) for her entry titled Overcoming poverty the hard way.

Stringer Kristy Inus went home with the Merit prize for the Entertainment, Culture and Arts Reporting Award.

Her entry was titled Artist showcases unifying power of woven works in Borneo Heart exhibition.

Lee will be bringing home RM2,500 while Kristy won RM500, besides their certificates.

Their works were among the 270 entries received for the awards.

Earlier in the event, Sabah Journalist Association president Datuk Muguntan Vanar reminded all media practitioners to always operate professionally, more so with various rising challenges facing mainstream media.

He said there was a growing appreciation for verified news from the mainstream media, and that itself should serve as an opportunity for media people to operate within the parameters of journalism ethics.

He mentioned plagiarism among others, saying how the ‘fear of missing out’ should not pressure anyone to resort to this form of operation.

Muguntan said plagiarism was akin to theft, and that no journalist should lose sight of the need to put in the effort to bring a good story out on their own merits.

He urged senior journalists, especially editors, to focus on moulding the younger generation of journalists by shaping them with the right set of values, ethics and practices.

“Our theme this year is ‘Forging Forward in The Digital Age’.

“It is important we do just that to keep up with the times, but without sacrificing the basic principles of journalism,” he said.