The AP quickly deployed an all-formats team that dominated the story by providing voices and color from Vang Vieng, Laos, ahead of competitors.
AP’s visuals were widely used, first in Australia and New Zealand and then in Europe and the U.S. as the scope of the tragedy linked to tainted alcohol expanded. Outlets like the BBC and The New York Times without a footprint in Laos came to depend on AP’s reporting.
The diverse team deployed to Laos included language expertise in Vietnamese and Thai, skills that proved key in communicating on the ground and overcoming challenges in developing sources.
Information from the government in Laos, a one-party communist state, was restrictive, so the team turned to AP bureaus in New Zealand, Australia, United Kingdom and Thailand to confirm key details on the breaking story.
The coverage also expanded into other storytelling formats beyond the spot story.
Those included a text explainer and on-camera expert interview about methanol, its poisonous effects, and how it ends up in alcoholic drinks even though it’s not meant for consumption.
Another story centered on the town of Vang Vieng, a tourist draw located in one Southeast Asia’s poorest nations. The piece illuminated and how the mass poisoning sparked fears among both foreign tourists and local businesses.
The judges were impressed with the strong sense of place, wide range of story angles covered and the impressive collaboration across AP’s unrivaled footprint. For their reporting that kept AP far ahead, Jintamas Saksornchai, Hau Dinh, Anupam Nath and David Rising earn this week’s Best of the AP — First Winner.
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Honorable Mentions
