DestinAsian Wins Again at the 2009 SOPA Awards


Jakarta, June 15, 2009 – Continuing its award-winning tradition, DestinAsian magazine walked away with two honors in Hong Kong at the 11th-annual Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) awards for editorial excellence.

The awards, selected from hundreds of nominations and judged by a distinguished panel of editors and journalists from leading publications across the Asia-Pacific region, recognize outstanding editorial achievements spanning reportage, photography, and graphic design. DestinAsian’s wins—in the category of local newspapers or small magazines published in English—were for Excellence in Feature Photography for “A World Away” (Matthieu Paley), and Excellence in Feature Photography (Honorable Mention) for “Into The Heart of Siberut” (Martin Westlake).

The judges described Paley’s images of the Hunza Valley in northern Pakistan as “Simply stunning photos, the kind that leap off the page and invite you to walk into them. Gorgeous images from a far-away land I know I’ll probably never get to, but now at least can dream about.” The judges were similarly impressed by Westlake’s photographs of the Indonesian island of Siberut, describing his images as a “Rich, sensitive portrayal of a unique culture.”

Says Christopher P. Hill, the magazine’s Editor-in-Chief and Associate Publisher, “It’s very encouraging to see DestinAsian acknowledged time and time again for its commitment to original, high-quality photography and design, which we believe lies at the core of any great travel magazine. The SOPA awards come as a timely recognition of the effort and expense we put into making DestinAsian an engaging experience for readers.”

Notes to Editors: Published six times a year, DestinAsian has a readership of more than 125,000. It is distributed to affluent travelers through newsstands, subscriptions, in-flight and controlled circulation to countries and airlines throughout Asia and Australia. The aim is to reach those individuals who enjoy travel and appreciate the finer things in life. The DestinAsian Media Group began operations in Jakarta, Indonesia, in 2001 and apart from DestinAsian itself, now publishes several lifestyle publications.

Media inquiries should be directed to:
Joyce Cowie, tel: (852) 9279-6290, or e-mail: jcowie@destinasian.com

DestinAsian subscription and distribution inquiries should be directed to:
Vera Siagian, tel: (62-21) 573-7070, fax: (62-21) 574-7733, e-mail: subscribe@destinasian.com or visit destinasian.com

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