NATCHITOCHES – KLTV (Tyler, Texas) News Anchor Lane Luckie (2008) was honored as a recipient of a RIAS Media Prize award for his reports from Germany last September. The 32nd annual awards are presented by the RIAS Berlin Commission and celebrates some of the best of transatlantic broadcast journalism, including radio, television and digital media.

The winners were celebrated earlier this month at a gala ceremony at Berlin’s Meistersaal, a historic concert hall where the legendary David Bowie, Depeche Mode, and U2 all recorded albums.

Luckie earned the RIAS Fellow Award for a series of seven spot news reports from Germany during a RIAS fellowship program to Cologne and Munich.

His entry received the following commendation.

“In a series of seven live reports from Germany to Tyler, Texas, Luckie delivers content that effectively examines the unique relationship between the United States and Germany. In one report from Munich, Luckie showcases the NFL’s efforts to enhance its footprint in Germany thanks to a new deal and measurable growth abroad. During that report, Luckie demonstrated his knowledge of both countries and how America’s favorite pastime continues to gain new ground. Especially impressive was that Luckie’s live shots were performed individually as a ‘one man band’; a sign that he is capable of writing, shooting, and editing his own content.”

Special reporting assignments for KLTV have taken Luckie to Germany, Belgium, China, Poland and France.

The RIAS Media Prize jury, made up of six distinguished journalists from the United States and Germany, selected the five winners in TV, radio, digital media and fellow categories submitted from across the United States and Germany.

The German-American jury was comprised of Co-chair Michael Gargiulo (WNBC TV, New York), Co-chair Anja Heyde (ZDF/MDR, Berlin/Magdeburg) as well as Helge Fuhst (ARD, Hamburg), Melissa Eddy (The New York Times, Berlin), Larry Miller (WUSA9, Washington DC) and Christian Wilp (NTV/RTL, Berlin).

The RIAS Berlin Commission, created to keep alive the spirit of the legendary Radio in the American Sector (RIAS) broadcaster after it went off the air for good in 1993, has been operating exchange programs for more than 2,000 German and American broadcast journalists since 1993 with the aim of promoting transatlantic understanding in journalism.

“The RIAS Media Prize is awarded annually to journalists whose stories have helped strengthen the diversity of transatlantic dialogue and to deepen interest in German-American relations,” a news release stated. “The awards are presented to reporting that promotes dialogue on similarities and differences in transatlantic relations. They also stand out thematically; take on new questions in a creative way; critically examine and make the diversity of social reality clear; contain interesting suggestions for transatlantic debate; encourage reflection on problems and solutions; question clichés about Germans and/or Americans; describe trends in everyday life that are of general interest; contribute in a special way to mutual curiosity and understanding; and are suitable to strengthen democratic and societal values.”

Luckie joined KLTV, the ABC affiliate in Tyler in 2012.  A native of Lake Charles, he earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism at NSU in 2008.