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His modesty is so great, that even a purely personal distinction Pavlos Tsimas found a way to make it collective. He had just finished the ceremony of awarding him an honorary doctorate of the Faculty of Humanities of the Hellenic Open University (EAP), when Elena Helvatzoglou, a colleague from SKAI, approached him to ask him how he was feeling. And he, almost collected and shy, as if seeing a camera for the first time, replied that our work was rewarded. That is, journalists who try to do their job with honor, passion and principles. The truth is that in Greece we are not used to seeing such recognition for people who have long served the press and the media, and so this initiative, in fact, in addition to highlighting the virtues of a special personality, shows how much we need good and quality journalism in the age of metal.
The event took place on Friday, June 5, 2026 in the auditorium of the Hellenic Olympic Committee. As was natural, it gathered a large number of guests from the political, academic and journalistic fields. Among those present was the Archbishop of Athens and all Greece, Mr. Ieronymos, the former deputy prime minister and former president of PASOK Evangelos Venizelos and the former commissioner of Greece to the European Union and former president of the Coalition of the Left and Progress, Maria Damanaki. The ceremony was opened by the Rector of the Hellenic Open University, Professor Manolis Koutouzis, who emphasized that the selection of the honoree also reflects the values of the university itself. As for our beloved colleague, who started in the 1980s, he emphasized that he is a personality who for 45 years promotes ethics and culture in public discourse and not only: “Insatiable intellectual curiosity, trust in right speech, respect for dialogue, openness to the different. His speech is gentle, but at the same time courageous. He is a civilized interlocutor, a gifted researcher and a model of behavior in the public space of our country.”
The laudatio – for the life and work of Pavlos Tsimas – was presented by the vice-rector of Academic Affairs and Outreach, professor Takis Kayalis. He described him as “a man of innate kindness, morality and modesty, of excellent taste and of rare cultivation”. The honoree himself spoke about the most topical issue of our time. The title of his speech was “Democracy without journalism? Journalism without Democracy?”. After making a historical review of the journalistic profession through personal experiences and memories, he focused on the big challenges. The dominance of social media, the advent of AI are drastically changing the nature of the operation, but not its principles. He expressed optimism that, like previous battles against technological developments, this one too will ultimately be won by the human and democratic dimension of History and life. Beyond all his virtues, however, what characterizes him is that, after four decades, he is still absolutely in love with the job: “Journalism is the most beautiful job in the world,” he concluded.
As part of the ceremony, the resolution of the School of Humanities was read by the dean of the school, Professor Antigoni Vlavianou Detjortzis, for the contribution of Pavlos Tsimas to journalistic research and for his constant contribution to the cultivation of a seasoned, sober and bold public discourse. This was followed by the awarding of the honorary doctorate, the presentation of the relevant diploma and the dressing of the honoree with the ribbon by the rector of the EAP.
