The Nobel Prize in Literature will not be awarded this year, the Swedish Academy said Friday.
The annual prize is being canceled in 2018 because of a sexual abuse scandal involving the Swedish panel, The New York Times reported.
The Swedish Academy said it would award two prizes in 2019. The lack of a winner in the literature category marks the first time since 1943 that the panel is not awarding one of the world’s top cultural prizes, the Times reported.
Other Nobel Prizes are not affected by the academy’s decision, the newspaper reported.
The Nobel Foundation said in a statement Friday that, "The crisis in the Swedish Academy has adversely affected the Nobel Prize. Their decision underscores the seriousness of the situation and will help safeguard the long-term reputation of the Nobel Prize."
In November, a Swedish newspaper reported that 18 women said they had been sexually assaulted or harassed by Jean-Claude Arnault, a photographer who is tied to the Swedish Academy, the Times reported. Arnault has denied the allegations.
Arnault is married to a member of the academy, Katarina Frostenson.
About the Author
