Entries open for Awards for Excellence in Journalism

Categories

• The categories are:
  • Press Freedom Grand Prize: It will be awarded to a person or organization with significant achievements in favor of the cause of press freedom and freedom of expression. Any person may nominate or apply for this award.
  • Migration Journalism Claudio Paolillo: Coverage of migration issues including causes and consequences of the flow of people. The Jury will consider works that stand out for their newsworthiness, argumentation, balance, use of sources and complementary material.
  • Cartoon and Illustration: Graphic images on current issues. The Jury will consider works that stand out for their originality, aesthetic and journalistic value, timeliness and power of synthesis.
  • News coverage of current events: The category joins the previous ones, Internet News Coverage and News Coverage. It is news coverage of current events, including all types of graphic and audiovisual resources.
  • Interview with Alejandro Miró Quesada Garland: Dialogue that allows for an in-depth look at the personality and environment of the interviewee and highlights his or her opinions on newsworthy issues.
  • Chronicle: Works in any platform that respect the essential characteristics of the genre: personal implication, temporal sequence, journalistic value and literary writing. The Jury will consider works that stand out for their originality, journalistic value and social impact.
  • Photography: Still images on issues of social impact. The Jury will consider those photographic reports that stand out for their timeliness, originality, aesthetic and journalistic value.
  • Video: Moving images on issues of social impact. The Jury will consider those video reports that stand out for their timeliness, originality, aesthetic and journalistic value.
  • Opinion: Opinion columns on issues of social impact. The Jury will consider works that stand out for the strength of their argumentation, timeliness, relevance and style.
  • Data Journalism: This category joins the previous categories, Data Journalism and Infographics. It is the exhibition of data based on journalistic research, using all possible artistic means.
  • In-depth Journalism: Investigative journalism on issues of social importance. The Jury will consider works that stand out for their use of investigative and analytical techniques, live and documentary sources and field work.
  • Environmental Journalism Roberto Eisenmann Jr: Coverage of environmental issues that denounce harmful actions or reflect measures for their preservation and care. The Jury will consider works that stand out for their newsworthiness, argumentation, balance, use of sources, complementary material and multimedia, if that is the case.
  • College Journalism Sustainability: Report with a free theme that has been published in university media. The Jury will consider works that stand out in the handling of the reportage genre, whose essential characteristics are topicality, varied use of sources and data, photographs, interviews and documents, in which skills learned during the career can be observed.
  • Digital transformation: Innovative and/or successful initiative, strategy or project in the areas of subscriptions, digital marketing, sponsored journalism, audience and vertical segmentation, events, sponsored content, micropayments, donations, readers’ club, creative campaigns, innovation or transformation culture.
  • Great friend of the press: organization, institution, company or individual that has excelled in supporting the media through sponsorships, loans and/or donations.
  • Executive of the Year: Media executive of great impact on his or her company and/or community. Their leadership and vision reflected in the company’s performance and influence within the community they serve, whether or not in the field of journalistic content, will be highlighted.

Benefits

• Participating in an international journalistic contest has numerous advantages beyond the gratification of the prize, since it allows:
  • To make a self-evaluation, in quantity and quality, of the work done during the year.
  • To compare experiences, approaches, techniques and styles with other colleagues from the same media and from other publications around the world.
  • To make known the best of the professional practice.

Prize Information

• The majority of the first prizes in each category will be awarded US$2,000 (two thousand US dollars).
• The first prize winners will receive their prizes in cash, plaques, or diplomas during the General Assembly. In addition, the Jury may also award certificates to the winners of honorable mentions.
• Travel and lodging expenses for the winners at the General Assembly correspond to the media in which the winners work.

Eligibility Criteria

• The contest is usually open for works published between June 1, 2023 and May 31 of the current year in print media -daily, weekly or magazine-, digital native media and online publications of radio and television stations:
  • Written, radio or television works are accepted on any platform; independently or in series.
  • Certain types of works are not accepted, including theses, dissertations, essays, books, magazines with special themes or extraordinary journalistic projects.
  • In the case of audiovisual and radio recordings, only works between 10 and 15 minutes in length will be accepted.
  • The same work may only be entered in one category, otherwise it will be disqualified.
  • It is possible to compete with different works in up to three categories.
  • In serial works, only the first and last installment will be accepted, plus three others at the discretion of the contestants. The number of articles in the series must be mentioned.
  • Only works that have actually been published during the dates specified in the Call for Papers may be submitted.

Nomination Criteria

• Articles and stories published in Spanish, English, and Portuguese may compete. The form must be completed and submitted online.
• The IAPA Grand Prize for Press Freedom is open to individuals or organizations that have developed extraordinary action in defense of press freedom. Authorities, employees, or people hired by the IAPA may not compete. IAPA members can only nominate people or institutions for this award during the Mid-Year Meeting held in March or April each year.
• Those articles published in a newspaper, weekly, magazine, or online publication may compete. However, those published in books, essays, theses, and any other intellectual manifestation outside the mentioned media will not be able to compete. The same applies to news agencies.
• The nominated works must have been published between June 1st of 2024 and May 31st. of 2025. The nominations must be submitted before May 31st, 2025.

For more information, visit IAPA.