Jürgen Klatzer and Matthias Winterer Are the Best Journalists of 2025

For their revelations about SOS Children's Villages, two FALTER investigators were chosen by a jury as "Journalists of the Year."

17.12.2025

An award that truly brings joy: the honored FALTER editors Jürgen Klatzer and Matthias Winterer on the cover of the trade magazine "Österreichs Journalist:in"

There are awards that are quite nice. And there are awards that mean something to us.

Jürgen Klatzer, formerly of ORF Report, and Matthias Winterer, formerly of Wiener Zeitung, were selected by a jury of the trade magazine Österreichs Journalist:in as "Journalists of the Year."

For months, the two have been revealing how SOS Children's Villages deals with serious allegations: how transgressions were covered up, how people turned a blind eye, how an organization that presented itself as morally beyond reproach and solicited donations failed to fulfill its mission of child welfare.

Even the founder, Hermann Gmeiner, an icon of the Second Republic, stands at the center of the most serious accusations. Children he allegedly subjected to inappropriate treatment were compensated by SOS Children's Villages. And to this day, the impression persists: this organization prefers to protect itself rather than the children it exists to serve. You can read the latest investigation by Winterer and Klatzer here.

That such investigations are not only uncomfortable but also recognized with awards is a good sign. A rare one. We brought Klatzer and Winterer to FALTER just this year to do exactly that: expand the investigative strength of our editorial team. We don't just want to investigate corruption cases, political bribery, police violence, or abuse of power in ministries. That is our core brand — but not enough. We want to professionalize investigative journalism and have it understood as teamwork, far removed from the industry's usual vanities.

We also want to look where institutions disguise themselves morally. Where they claim to be there for the most vulnerable: children's homes, prisons, hospitals, nursing homes. Places where power is especially asymmetric — and oversight especially necessary. This is painstaking and meticulous work. It doesn't just consist of transcribing press releases or holding a microphone up to politicians.

Our guiding star is also Viennese investigative journalism in the tradition of modernism: looking behind the facades, illuminating the backstage of society, and holding those responsible accountable. In Vienna, there are some long-forgotten role models: Max Winter, Emil Kläger, Viktor Adler, and later, in personalities like Claus Gatterer.

That our investigations are not only read but also have impact has to do with our time as well. In an era of fake news, fog news, propaganda, and marketing-driven reports, many people long for exactly what journalism should actually be: enlightenment instead of distraction. Truth instead of narrative. Oversight instead of closeness.

In this spirit, I congratulate — also on behalf of the entire FALTER editorial team — my two colleagues. We are proud of you. And I am proud that together we have all developed FALTER this year into the leading investigative medium.

By the way, we have not only received honors for investigative achievements. Barbara Tóth was chosen as the best journalist of the year in the "Domestic Politics" category. Heribert Corn is Photographer of the Year. And our colleagues Soraya Pechtl, Nina Horaczek, Lina Paulitsch, Viktoria Klimpfinger, and Doris Knecht are in the Top Ten in their respective categories.

Another piece of good news is our reach: it has increased to 3.8 percent, we have become the weekly political magazine with the widest reach. 280,000 people read FALTER. We have nearly tripled our circulation and our readership in recent years. Because we believe in the newspaper as a "work," in editorial journalism, and in our readership, which is willing to pay for all of this.

In this sense, I also thank you. Through your subscriptions, you make our work possible in times of media crises. Stay well-disposed toward us.

Yours, Florian Klenk

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