The ultimate standard for the award was “the sparkle of communication about faith and religion with fairness and professionalism, integrity and respect.”
Two Epoch Times journalists on April 25th accepted the award for their efforts to expose human rights abuses by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and support Jews in war-torn Israel.
This honor was presented at the annual conference of the Council of Religious Communicators in Salt Lake City.
Reporter Eva Who, splitting time between New York and Washington, won the 2025 Wilbur Award. It is the highest honor awarded by the Council and is presented annually to recognize the most prominent work in the communication of religious issues, values and themes in secular media.
Atlanta-based Epoch Times reporter Danburger received an award for Excellence at the event. Honor emphasizes entries that are of superior quality and undoubtedly deemed to be recognized, the council said.
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The Council’s Awards highlighted exceptional works featured in 2024 by 20 media outlets in the fields of print and online journalism, book publishing, podcasts, radio, television and film.
The winners of the award were selected by media expert ju judges based on content, creativity, impact and excellence in the transmission of religious values. The ultimate standard is “the sparkle of communication about faith and religion with fairness and professionalism, integrity and respect,” the organization said in a press release.
“I was impressed with this year’s entry, and it’s encouraging how they approach the topic of faith: their desire to promote understanding and connection,” said Brad Pomerance, the organization’s awards coordinator.
“Their work reflects the theme of our treaty of ‘cooperation through communication’ and is evidence of the important role of communication in building bridges between different groups. ”
“A quiet secret”
In accepting her award, Who praised her work and thanked the council for lifting up the voices of those who shared her tragic experiences with her.
“In 2006, our organization, Epoch Times, was the first to report on the topic after whistleblowers from China moved forward to us.
Falun Gong is the first spiritual discipline introduced to the public in 1992 in China, but was persecuted by the CCP after losing popularity with an estimated 70 million practitioners since 1999. The teaching encourages practitioners to live by three principles: truthfulness, compassion and tolerance.
“Today (CCP organ killing), it’s still a quiet secret. Just ask the Chinese AI app Deepseek and you’ll see how little CCP is tolerance to this issue.
Reporter Eva Hu, with senior editors of the Epoch Times, Yang Zekielek (L) and reporter Danberger (second L) next to her, will accept the 2025 Wilbur Award at a banquet at the Religious Communicators Council Annual Meeting held in Salt Lake City on April 25, 2025. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times
“Black-in-threatening won’t work for everyone. This (US) Congress is considering three federal bills to combat forced organ collection, and four states have passed laws to stop health insurance coverage for organ transplants from China.”
“Since I was convinced that accumulated evidence was real in 2006, I have reported on the frightening practice of CCP’s nationally approved organ collection, so I am moving to see the next generation.
“Experience shows that it is particularly difficult to tell the truth when it comes to crimes against this kind of humanity, because of the sense that people resist accepting it because of that fear, and that they have a responsibility to act accordingly.
Before the awards banquet, Fu recalls why receiving honor means so much to her.
“Many people have put so much faith in me by revealing what they have experienced, including sharing truly dark memories that are very painful in memories,” said Hu, who was born in China. “We are grateful for this award for further elevating their voice.”
Even as a child, she said, she recognized that CCP “betrayed her conscience.” “My friend from elementary school, who practiced Falun Gong, did not dare to reveal her faith in school, fearing punishment. She could not openly express her worth.”
Fu became a reporter for the Epoch Times in 2019. One of her first missions was to cover a gathering in New York. There, they met survivors from Chinese prisons and labor camps.
“One woman jailed for refusing to give up her belief in Falun Gong, showed us how she was forced to clean the toilet, even when she was suffering from beating and other torture in Chinese detention facilities.
The recipients of the Annual Awards awarded by the Religious Communicator Council, including Epoch Times reporters EvaHoo (8th L) and Dumberger (7th R), will be photographed at the organization’s annual meeting held in Salt Lake City on April 25, 2025. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times
This year’s Wilbur Award recipients included Abraham’s Bridge. Associated Press; Baltimore Banner. Jonah Pratt and Jews. BO Media, CBC Radio. CBS 60 minutes; CBS Sunday morning. Epoch era; Greater Glove Hall Main Street/Boston Herald. Harper’s Magazine; Hasid Archives; A bit of Jude Production. National Public Radio; NPR News; Pittsburgh Post Gazette. Politzer Foundation; Religious News Service; San Francisco Chronicle.
The Council has been awarding the Wilbur Award every year since 1949. They praise the late Marvin C. Wilber, a longtime council leader and former Presbyterian official.
The son of a Holocaust survivor
Berger, another Epoch Times reporter, praised the reporting on religious issues, but he said he appreciated the opportunity to write about the discrimination facing Israel and Jews and the organization’s perception of his work.
Now for 70 years, the native, a buffalo in New York, had decided to become a journalist decades ago while sitting in a hut in a Muslim village in West Africa while working in the Peace Corps.
Years ago, he said he realized it was time to look ahead to get “real work,” and he knew he wanted to aim for his Yale English degree in something other than studying more English literature.
He said he was in touch with the outside world by reading a free copy of Newsweek sent courtesy of US taxpayers, in addition to copies of the International Herald Tribune available in nearby towns.
At that time, he decided that I could do this.
There he pursued a degree in journalism, covering local news from upstate New York and Florida newspapers to work, and eventually left to become a stay-at-home father.
In 2022, his children grew up and he was recruited by a former Florida newsroom colleague who worked as an editor for the Epoch Times. And after attacking Israel on October 7, 2023, he took on the challenges covering the conflict and anti-Semitism it created in the United States and around the world.
Berger, the son of a Holocaust survivor, traveled to Israel in March 2024 to report the conflict.
Now he believes that much of Israeli news coverage is tilted towards it. He found an aim to show “the other side of that story,” he said.
“I have come in recent years to appreciate the positive power of religion not only among my co-religious people, but among many faiths I work with every day,” Berger said.
“We see how their faith helps them get their daily lives back on track – colonies, Catholics, Falun Gong practitioners, etc.
“The world can always use it more.”
