Writing, Photo and Design Contest

Divisions: Writing and Editorials, Photography, Page Design and NEW in 2008

a Non-Daily Publications division.

 

Note also, photo entries must be submitted in digital format.

Contest Year: April 1, 2007, through March 31, 2008. All entries must be postmarked by May 20, 2008.

Eligibility: A newspaper must be a dues-paid member of NEAPNEA. Sunday editions must submit entries in the member's largest daily circulation class. Articles that appeared first or only on a member's Web site may be entered into the appropriate category; printouts from the newspaper's archives showing the date it was posted will be accepted.

Entering the contest:

Labels: Staple - do not tape - a label to the back side, upper right corner of each entry. For multiple entries, attach one label to the last photo, section or clips. Click here for worksheet and labels.

Entry sizes: Entries, whether tearsheets or clips, should be folded no larger than 8 1/2" x 11"

Sorting: Place entries for each category into separate manila folders. Example: feature stories should be in one folder, general news entries in another, enterprise stories in another. Write the contest category on each folder's tab.

Photo Entries:  Submit photos stored on CD's or DVD's along with the tearsheet of the photo.  See detailed instructions on preparing your entry below.

Editorial Entries: Photocopies are acceptable. Except for Web-only entries (which should be printed from the newspaper's archive showing the date it was posted), judges need to see the copy as it appeared in print. Do not submit entries in ring binders or scrapbooks.

Number of Entries Permitted: Maximum of three entries per newspaper per category in each division. Individual categories may have other requirements.

Contact Form: Submit the contact form provided with each package of entries.

Circulation Class: Use the latest Editor & Publisher figures.

- The average circulation of your Monday through Saturday editions determines your circulation class. Disregard your Sunday circulation.

- Web-only entries are to be submitted in the circulation class of  the newspaper itself.

- Non-Daily Publications should be submitted in the circulation class of the parent daily.

-  If the entry is written by staff members from more than one newspaper, use the papers' combined circulation to determine the class and fee.

Class entry fees - based on circulation
Class 1:	60,000-plus	$15.00 per entry
Class 2:	30,000 to 59,999	$12.00 per entry
Class 3:	Up to 29,999	$10.00 per entry

 

WRITING AND EDITORIAL DIVISION

Categories

The same story or series of stories may not be entered in more than one category.

Deadline News Coverage: Must be written on deadline, or where prior planning and research was not possible. A note from the editor, explaining the time restrictions and deadline framework, may be attached to the entry. It may include multiple stories published on a single day.

Continuing Coverage: Ongoing coverage of a developing news event, demonstrating commitment to ongoing coverage stretched over a number of days. Submit no more than 5 stories, accompanied by a description of work.

Beat Reporting: Demonstrates a breadth of knowledge about a particular beat through original source work not available elsewhere. Submit no more than 3 stories per reporter. A letter from the editor to describe overall beat development is encouraged.

Enterprise: A non-deadline, issue-oriented, pre-planned story or series of stories. May be published on one or more days. Sidebars may be included. Analysis may be entered in this category.

Investigative Reporting: A story or series of stories that exposes corruption, misfeasance or injustice through original reporting, research or analysis.

Business/Consumer News: Breaking news, continuing coverage or a pre-planned package or series on a business development or a topic of interest to consumers.

Feature Story: Does not include analysis, which should be entered under Enterprise category.

Arts and Entertainment Writing: Analysis or criticism may be entered into this category. One entry per writer; three per newspaper.

Local Column: Three columns by the same writer per entry; maximum of three writers from one newspaper.

Sports Story: Game coverage or sports news.

Sports Feature or Enterprise: Feature story or series. Sidebars and analysis related to the topic may be included.

Sports Column: Three columns by the same writer per entry; maximum of three writers from one newspaper.

Editorial: Three editorials by the same writer per entry; maximum of three writers from one newspaper.

Best headline: Entries can be serious or humorous in nature. Story must accompany each entry. One entry per writer; three per newspaper.

Right to Know: The award recognizes equally three New England journalists or newspapers, across circulation classes, for work that advances the First Amendment, makes good use of freedom of information principles and/or statutes, or widens the scope of information available to the public. The Award is founded on the principle that the Right to Know is as essential to a free society as the Right to Vote, and that responsible newspapers play a vital role in advancing this right.

Criteria:
The award honors significant commitment and groundbreaking work that protects and advances public access to the records and processes of government.

The judges will give preference to entries that demonstrate a newspaper's willingness to challenge official resistance to the principles of the First Amendment and federal and state laws governing freedom of information.

The judges will look favorably on work that challenges government secrecy that would advance special interests, promote personal advantage, hide corruption, conceal official mistakes and otherwise inhibit public participation in, or knowledge of, the records and processes of government.

DESIGN DIVISION

Categories

Each newspaper is allowed three entries per category. No special reprints allowed.

• Page 1
• Sports Page
• Feature/Perspective Page
• Business Page
• Local/Region section front
• Informational Graphic
• Illustration: Fine art illustration.
• Photo Illustration: Demonstrating a preconceived concept created by photographer and/or designer.

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PHOTO DIVISION

Categories

1.       Deadline News

2.       General News (planned or unplanned)

3.       Feature

4.       Portrait or Profile

5.       Sports Action

6.       Sports Feature

7.      Photo Story Photo  (maximum 26 photographs)

 

PREPARING THE IMAGES:

You will need to use Adobe Photoshop 3.0 or higher to prepare your images. We will accept Macintosh or PC CDs or DVDs. The image orientation must read in normal viewing position, with top of the image actually being at the top. We will not flop or rotate images.

 

SIZING YOUR IMAGES:

Set your resolution to 200 dpi; and 10" on the longest side.

 

FILE COMPRESSION:

Save the image in RGB mode and compress the file using JPEG compression set to 5, or Medium with Format Option ABaseline standard@. Do not use Progressive JPEG option.

 

CAPTIONING YOUR IMAGES:

Using PhotoShop's File Info option (under the File menu), caption the photo in no more than 50 words. Enter this information in the Caption section of the File Info window. Following the caption, add your photographer's initials and a title.

 

For example:  Jane Doe and her daughter, Emily Doe, 6, watch as their dog, Buffy, races to catch a plastic flying disc during a day in Pine Park.  pmj    JUMPING FOR THE DISC

 

Use the File Info option, not a captioning plug-in such as SCC. Even if your photos are already captioned using a captioning plug-in, you must re-enter the information directly into File Info.

 

NAMING YOUR FILES:

4 sets of characters are required for this.

1^st is the contest category number (1 thru 7)

2^nd is the photographer's 3 letter initials

3^rd is your state's postal code (ct-ma-me-nh-ri-vt)

4^th is a sequential one-digit number corresponding to the number of photos you are entering in that category.  (Add sequential letters to the string for each photo in photo story submissions.)

Always end the file name in .jpg

 

 

Here's an example of a Photo Story entry:  five photographs are being entered in the photo story category (# 7) by Paul M Jones (pmj) from a New Hampshire (nh) newspaper; one entry (1), five photos (a), (b), (c), (d), (e): 

 

7pmjnh1a.jpg

7pmjnh1b.jpg

7pmjnh1c.jpg

7pmjnh1d.jpg

7pmjnh1e.jpg

 

 

SUBMITTING YOUR IMAGES:

All photo submissions may be placed on one CD or DVD.  Attach a completed label to each photo tearsheet.  Place all tearsheets and the CD in a folder clearly marked as photo contest entries.

 

QUESTIONS?

If you are confused by these rules you may contact us for clarification. 

Contact Michele Mitchell at mmitchell@ap.org or call 603-224-3327.

 

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NEW DIVISION    

NON-DAILY PUBLICATIONS DIVISION

 

The awards will recognize the overall quality of the publications. A first-, second- and third-place will be awarded in each category.

 

 

General Excellence and Innovation

 

Specialty Publications. These include any niche publications by the member newspaper company showcasing locally focused content. The judging will consider print and Web niche publications that demonstrate a multi-platform strategy or a Web venture alone, excluding the newspaper's general interest Web site. (Send up to three issues to be reviewed.)

 

General Interest Weekly
This category includes any general interest weekly publications published by NEAPNEA member newspaper company and showcasing locally focused content. (Send up to three issues to be reviewed.)