Kemal Kurspahić (1 December 1946 – 17 September 2021) was a Bosnian journalist.
He was managing editor of The Connection Newspapers in
Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city (United States), independent city in Northern Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of Washington, D.C., D.C. The city's population of 159,467 at the 2020 ...
and founder of the media in
Democracy Institute, dedicated to promoting higher standards in journalism in post-conflict societies and countries in transition to democracy. He won broad international recognition as the Editor-in-Chief of the Bosnian daily ''
Oslobođenje
The ''Oslobođenje'' ( sh-Cyrl, Ослобођење; ; 'Liberation') is the Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnian national daily newspaper, published in Sarajevo. It is the oldest daily newspaper still in circulation in the Bosnia and Herzegovina. Fou ...
'', 1989-1994.
[Tom Gjelten, Sarajevo Daily: A City and Its Newspaper Under Siege, (Perennial, 1996)] In 2023 ''Oslobođenje'' established international journalist award after him.
Early years
Kurspahić was born in
Mrkonjić Grad
Mrkonjić Grad ( sr-cyrl, Мркоњић Град, ) is a town and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is located in the Bosanska Krajina region, between Banja Luka and Jajce. As of 2013, the municipality has a populatio ...
. He attended elementary school in Croatia and Bosnia, before completing his high school in
Sanski Most
Sanski Most ( sr-cyrl, Сански Мост, ) is a town and municipality located in the Una-Sana Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated on the banks of the Sana River in northwes ...
during which time he began working as a freelancer writer. He earned his academic degree from the
University of Belgrade
The University of Belgrade () is a public university, public research university in Belgrade, Serbia. It is the oldest and largest modern university in Serbia.
Founded in 1808 as the Belgrade Higher School in revolutionary Serbia, by 1838 it me ...
's
Law School
A law school (also known as a law centre/center, college of law, or faculty of law) is an institution, professional school, or department of a college or university specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for b ...
. He was the editor at the Belgrade weekly Student paper during the students’ unrest in Europe in 1968 and then became sports correspondent in Belgrade and sports editor in Sarajevo for the Bosnian daily ''
Oslobođenje
The ''Oslobođenje'' ( sh-Cyrl, Ослобођење; ; 'Liberation') is the Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnian national daily newspaper, published in Sarajevo. It is the oldest daily newspaper still in circulation in the Bosnia and Herzegovina. Fou ...
''.
He reported from the
Olympic Games in Munich in 1972,
Lake Placid in 1980 and
Los Angeles in 1984 and from the
1974 Football World Cup in Germany.
Career
Kurspahić served as ''Oslobođenje’s'' New York correspondent, 1981-1985. and became the editor-in-chief in
Sarajevo
Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...
1989.
In that role he led the paper through three battles for press freedom: liberating the paper from the one-party control, 1989–1991; defending the paper against the nationalist takeover and winning the Constitutional Court case for its independence in 1991: publishing every day during the
siege of Sarajevo
The siege of Sarajevo () was a prolonged military blockade of Sarajevo, the capital of Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, during the ethnically charged Bosnian War. After it was initially besieged by Serbian forces of the Yugoslav People's Arm ...
from the underground atomic bomb shelter on the front lines of the besieged Bosnian capital, 1992-95.
During this period, he suffered an injury that left him with a lifelong limp when his car crashed while he was under sniper fire.
''Oslobođenje'' and Kurspahić have received some of the highest honors in journalism and human rights for maintaining the culture of ethnic and religious tolerance throughout the terror of the siege.
[News From Sarajevo's `Daily Miracle'; Through Shot and Shell, Paper Hits the Street Every Morning, The Washington Post, 2 September 1992, Blaine Harden]
He has published articles in numerous international dailies, including ''The New York Times, The Washington Post, The International Herald Tribune, The Los Angeles Times, Die Zeit, El País, Neue Zuercher Zetung, Dagens nyheter'' and other publications. He has appeared on programs such as ABC's ''
Nightline
''Nightline'' (or ''ABC News Nightline'') is ABC News (United States), ABC News' Late night television in the United States, late-night television news program broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC in the United States with a franchis ...
'' and ''
Good Morning America
''Good Morning America'', often abbreviated as ''GMA'', is an American breakfast television, morning television program that is broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC. It debuted on November 3, 1975, and first expanded to weekends wit ...
'', CBS's ''
60 Minutes
''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who distinguished it from other news programs by using a unique style o ...
'',
PBS News Hour
''PBS News Hour'', previously stylized as ''PBS NewsHour'', is the news division of PBS and an American daily evening television news program broadcast on over 350 PBS member stations since October 20, 1975. It airs seven nights a week, and ...
with Jim Lehrer, as well as British, Canadian and German television. In addition to living in Bosnia, Croatia and Serbia, as well as the United States, he has lived and worked as a diplomat in Vienna, Austria and Barbados and visited 60 countries. In 1997, he became managing editor for the Connection Newspapers based in
Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city (United States), independent city in Northern Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of Washington, D.C., D.C. The city's population of 159,467 at the 2020 ...
and served in that role until 2001 before resuming in 2007 until his passing.
Diplomacy
For five and a half years, 2001–2006, Kurspahić worked for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime,
first as the spokesman in Vienna, Austria and then as the Caribbean Regional Representative in Barbados, covering 29 states and territories.
He was a spokesman for the United Nations Signing Conference for the Convention against Corruption in Mérida, Mexico in December 2003.
[ ] In the Caribbean he worked with the regional governments, mostly on ministerial level, to promote regional cooperation against drug trafficking and organized crime.
Death
Kurspahić died on 17 September 2021 in
Reston, Virginia
Reston is a census-designated place in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States, and a principal city of both Northern Virginia and the Washington metropolitan area. As of the 2020 U.S. census, Reston's population was 63,226.
Founded in 1964, Rest ...
following a stroke. He is survived by his wife of 52 years Vesna and two sons.
Two years later ''
Oslobođenje
The ''Oslobođenje'' ( sh-Cyrl, Ослобођење; ; 'Liberation') is the Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnian national daily newspaper, published in Sarajevo. It is the oldest daily newspaper still in circulation in the Bosnia and Herzegovina. Fou ...
'' established international journalist award after him.
Books
He published four books:
* ''The White House in 1984'' on the presidential elections in the United States (Oslobodjenje, Sarajevo, 1994)
* ''Letters from the War'', the first book published in the besieged city of Sarajevo (Ideje, Sarajevo, 1992)
* ''As Long As Sarajevo Exists'' (Pamphleteer's Press, 1997)
* ''Prime Time Crime: Balkan Media in War and Peace'' (US Institute of Peace Press, 2003).
This book was also published in Sarajevo and Belgrade under the title ''Crime at 19:30 - Balkan Media in War and Peace''.
Awards and recognition
Kurspahić has received a number of prestigious international awards, including:
* South Eastern Europe Media Organization’s Dr. Erhard Busek Award for Better Understanding in the Region (SEEMO – Vienna, Austria, 2003);
*
World Press Freedom Hero (
International Press Institute
International Press Institute (IPI) is a global organisation dedicated to the promotion and protection of press freedom and the improvement of journalism practices. The institution was founded by 34 editors from 15 countries at Columbia Universit ...
- Vienna, Austria, 2000);
* 1993 International Editor of the Year (World Press Review - New York);
* 1992
Courage in Journalism Award The International Women's Media Foundation awards are annual prizes for women journalists awarded by the International Women's Media Foundation (IWMF) since its foundation in 1990: the Courage in Journalism Award (awarded since 1990); the Lifetime ...
in 1992 (International Women’s Media Foundation - Washington, D.C.);
* 1993 Bruno Kreisky Award for Human Rights (Dr Bruno Kreisky Foundation - Vienna, Austria).
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kurspahic, Kemal
1946 births
2021 deaths
People from Mrkonjić Grad
Bosniaks of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina Muslims
People of the Bosnian War
University of Belgrade Faculty of Law alumni
Bosnia and Herzegovina expatriates in the United States
Bosnia and Herzegovina journalists
Bosnia and Herzegovina writers
Newspaper editors