2007 Illinois Associated Press Broadcasters Association Journalism Excellence Contest

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ENTRY RULES

The Illinois AP Broadcasters Association contest is dedicated to rewarding excellence in radio and television journalism produced by AP members. The contest is open to all Illinois TV and radio stations in good standing with The Associated Press as of the January 18, 2008, entry deadline. All entries must be for work broadcast during the 2007 calendar year.

Stations in other states may enter if their primary coverage area includes Illinois and they have an Illinois AP broadcast wire. Entries from other states must explain why the story is of significant Illinois interest. The eligibility of all out-of-state entries will be decided by the Illinois AP Broadcast Contest judges.

Television entries may be on VHS or DVD.
Radio entries must be on compact disc.

The contest is divided into two classifications: Metro for stations licensed in Chicago and St. Louis, and Downstate for all other stations.

Each entry must be submitted on a separate tape/CD and the tape/CD must be marked to indicate category and either Metro or Downstate classification. Please be certain each tape/CD is inside a case and the appropriate entry labels are attached both to the outside of the case and the tape/CD itself. Unlabeled tapes/CDs can cause confusion during judging. Any supporting documents should also be well attached to the entries.

Proper entry forms and labels can be downloaded from this Web site, or you may print your own as long as they contain ALL of the required information: station call letters, contest category, entry title and the contact information for the person at your station who can answer questions about the entries.

Each entry must be the work of full-time or part-time employees paid by an AP-member station. Only AP-member stations may submit entries, but individual staff members may enter on their own with the knowledge and consent of their station. Individual entries are counted with station entries against entry limits in each category.

     Entries must be as they appeared on the air and may not be changed after broadcast or contain any network or syndicated material that might be mistaken by judges as original work.

Tapes become property of the AP, and 1st Place winners will be compiled into a “Best of Illinois” tape that will be available before the awards banquet in April.

           The award winners will be announced on the AP wire in March. Awards will be presented Saturday, April 19, 2008, at the spring meeting of the Illinois News Broadcasters Association in Springfield. Winners are strongly encouraged to accept their awards in person.
 
These awards are for journalistic excellence. Production is considered but is not the primary measure for making an award.

Judges have discretion to move entries from the category in which they were submitted to another category. Judges also have discretion to make second-place awards as they see fit or to decide that no award will be made in a category. A second-place award cannot be made unless there is a first-place award in the category. There are no third-place or honorable mention awards.

All entries should be shipped to: Tamara Starks, Broadcast Editor, The Associated Press, 10 S. Wacker Drive, Suite 2500, Chicago, IL 60606. Shipping fees are the responsibility of the entrant.