NEW DELHI: Zee News editor Alka Saxena has been conferred the prestigious Hindi Academy Sahitykaar Samman for the Journalist of the Year 2003-2004.
Saxena is the first woman editor as well as programming head of a news channel. She is known for her no-nonsense anchoring. She began her journalistic career in the mid-1980s with the Hindi newsmagazine Ravivar.
Saxena's writing in Ravivar and its sister magazine Sunday netted her the 'Best Young Journalist Award' by the Institute of Journalism, some years ago. She followed it with a stint with Sunday Observer where her reporting on the terrorism-ridden states of Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir earned her kudos.
Saxena, one of the founding members of Aaj Tak, has received a scholarship from the European Union and Thomson Foundation to produce a documentary on environment which was shot all over Europe and India.
Hindi academy, which gave the latest recognition to Saxena, is an autonomous body founded in 1981. The academy's aim is to promote and encourage Hindi as a language - its literature and its relation to the Indian culture.
The academy has a powerful coordination committee comprising 25 eminent personalities including writers, laureates, experts and journalists.