With first- and second-place finishes in the Asia-Pacific news agency competition

Mehr Media Group, an Iranian media organization that includes Mehr News Agency and produces and distributes news and other media content, has taken the top two places in the Best Article category of the 2026 awards of the Organization of Asia-Pacific News Agencies (OANA). The results were announced in Moscow during events marking the organization’s 65th anniversary.

Mehr Media Group, an Iranian media organization that includes Mehr News Agency and produces and distributes news and other media content, has taken the top two places in the Best Article category of the 2026 awards of the Organization of Asia-Pacific News Agencies (OANA). The results were announced in Moscow during events marking the organization’s 65th anniversary.

OANA: A regional network of news agencies
The Organization of Asia-Pacific News Agencies (OANA) is a regional network of news agencies established on December 22, 1961, in Bangkok at the initiative of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). It was initially created to facilitate the direct and free exchange of news among news agencies in the region. Its activities have since expanded to include professional cooperation, the exchange of experience and closer ties among member agencies.

As of 2026, OANA has 41 member news agencies from 35 countries, with 13 agencies represented on its Executive Board. The organization comprises a General Assembly, an Executive Board and other affiliated bodies. Under OANA’s statutes, the General Assembly is held every three years, while the Executive Board meets at least once a year.

Its members are news agencies from across the Asia-Pacific region that use the network to exchange news and professional experience and cooperate on issues related to the work of news agencies.

Iran and OANA: A longstanding presence
Iran is among OANA’s longstanding members. The Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) was one of the organization’s founding members and served as OANA’s rotating chair from 1997 to 2000. IRNA also served as vice chair in 2016 and has subsequently been represented on the organization’s Executive Board.

IRNA, Fars News Agency and Mehr News Agency are the three Iranian news agencies that are members of OANA. Mehr News Agency joined the organization in 2007, when its membership was approved as OANA’s 40th member at the organization’s 13th General Assembly in Jakarta.

Mehr has continued to participate in OANA activities, with the agency represented at the organization’s Executive Board meetings in 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2023.

OANA Awards: A competition for member agencies
In recent years, the OANA Awards have become one of the organization’s initiatives for showcasing and evaluating work produced by its member news agencies. According to OANA, the Best Photo and Best Article awards were held in 2024, with the winners subsequently announced. The Executive Board also called for the continuation of the awards and the organization of a 2025 edition.

The 2026 OANA Awards featured three categories: Best Photo, Best Photo Report and Best Article, with two thematic focuses: “Journalists at Work Through OANA’s Lens” and “Reflecting National Traditions and Culture in Modern Media.”

Under the competition rules, each member news agency could submit up to three entries in each category. Mehr Media Group submitted three entries in the Best Article category, with two of them ultimately taking first and second place.

Two Mehr articles take the top spots
In the 2026 Best Article category, “Iranian Art: The Triangle of Beauty, Creativity and Culture,” submitted by Mehr Media Group, won first place.

Another article, “The Battle of Narratives on the Ground: Reporting from the Heart of the Battlefield / How Accurate Storytelling Kept People on the Scene,” took second place.

The results were announced in Moscow during events marking OANA’s 65th anniversary, where awards were also presented to representatives of the winning media organizations.
Two top finishes bring Iranian media work wider exposure

By taking first and second place in the Best Article category, Mehr Media Group secured two of the top positions in a competition involving news agencies from across the Asia-Pacific region.

The recognition also gives the winning works an opportunity to reach a wider audience through OANA’s platforms and member news agencies, bringing examples of Iranian media production to a broader regional audience.

The OANA Awards are part of the organization’s wider efforts to strengthen cooperation among member news agencies and showcase the work produced across its membership.