Arkansas Press Women - Communications Contest Rules

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High School Journalism Contest

Communications Contest Rules

These rules are for the 2006 contest at the state level. Please read them carefully in planning your entries, and contact the contest director if you have questions.

Purpose:

The purpose of the APW Communications Contest is to improve professional skills by recognizing excellence in communicating. The "message" is what is important. The "message" -- how well it communicates, how it is directed to its target audience, how well it achieves its objectives -- is the judging standard.

Eligibility:

Entrants must be professional, student, or retired members of Arkansas Press Women and the National Federation of Press Women.

To be eligible to enter the contest, members must have paid their individual 2006 NFPW and Arkansas dues (Professional $66.50; Student $25; Retired $25) before their entries are submitted. New members may send their membership application and dues payment with their contest entries.

Deadlines:

All entries must be RECEIVED by the contest director at the address below no later than Feb. 3, 2006. Please ship your entry early enough to allow sufficient transit time. No late entries will be accepted.

Entry fee:

The state contest fee is $4.00 per entry. All state entry fees must be sent with the entries. First-place winners at the state level are eligible for entry in the national contest and the individual entrant is responsible for paying the national entry fee (see national entry information below).

Publication dates:

All entries must have been published, issued, broadcast, printed or e-published from January 1, 2005, through December 31, 2005.

The governing date is the date the broadcast was aired, the date printed on the publication, or the date e-published. If the entry is a series, use the publication date of the final article as the entry date, which allows the beginning article to have been published in a previous contest year.

Entry regulations:

Entries must conform to national contest categories. Entries submitted in the wrong category or sub-category, not properly labeled, or failing to have all required statements will be disqualified. Judges may NOT change an entry to another category or disqualify entries. Only the state contest directors can disqualify entries.

At the state level only, members are allowed up to three entries per person per category or subcategory.

No entry may be submitted in more than one category or sub-category.

CLARIFICATION: Stories may be entered in writing categories, while the page, supplement, publication or Web site that bears that story also may be entered in editing categories. It is not the intent to prevent a writer and an editor from entering their individual work when work by both contestants appears in the same publication or broadcast.

Entries in all categories except editing, producing, or public relations and advertising brochures must be entirely the work of the member.

EXPLANATION: In Print Media categories 11-15, the editor or the producer may not have done all work on the page or publication. Also, few persons in advertising or PR are totally responsible for any item, ad, brochure, or direct mail campaign. The team principle usually applies. Therefore, the entrant should be the creative planner, responsible for seeing "the message" through; the content director; or the copywriter.

Members who collaborate on material may enter together, but each must have paid NFPW and APW dues. Duplicate certificates will be awarded those winners.

The contestant's entry form should list all roles in creating the entry. Example: Creative coordinator and copywriter; or copywriter and layout; etc.

Preparing Entries:

Each entry must be accompanied by two copies of the official APW entry form, which is available on this web site or from the APW contest director(s), and by the fee of $4.00 per entry. The APW form must be used for all state entries.

Note the special instructions for entries in each of the following divisions: "print media," "photography," "electronic media" (radio and television and Web site pages), "advertising," "public relations/ promotion/ publicity," and "books/fiction/verse," with specific details printed for some of the categories. If these instructions call for a statement to accompany the entry, the lack of that statement automatically will disqualify the entry.

Note that categories calling for a tearsheet require the entire page from the publication in which the entry appeared. If an original page is not available, a photocopy may be submitted, but it must include the entire page and identify the publication and date published. Do not send a clipping when a tearsheet is specified.

Each entry MUST be placed in a separate 9" x 12" open-end manila envelope. If entry is too large to slip easily in and out of a 9" x 12" envelope, Entry envelope example please use the next larger size that will accommodate the entry. Do not use anything smaller than a 9" x 12", and do not use envelopes that open on the side as the entries are stored and handled vertically.

When looking at the front or "address" side of the envelope, hold it vertically with the open end at the top. Clearly write the entrant's name, affliate state, category number and sub-category letter on the top right-hand corner of the envelope. Do NOT write on back of envelope (side where fastener and flap are located) or on the flap. Tuck the flap in and behind the entry. Do NOT fasten or seal the envelope.

Securely package your entries and ship them to:

APW Communications Contest
Teresa Newton, Director
14090 Robin Circle
Fayetteville AR 72704

National contest entries:

If you want your entry to go on to national competition in the event it wins first place at the state level, you must check the box on the entry form and agree to pay the additional $20 entry fee for national. If you check this box and win first place at the state level, the contest director will notify you in March of the amount due for national entry fee(s).

Payment of the national fee(s) to APW is due not later than March 28, 2006. If national fee(s) are not paid by this deadline, your entry will NOT go to the national contest.

Members may enter the national contest ONLY if they receive a first place award in the state communications contest. National contest entries may be sent to the contest manager ONLY by the state contest director.

Awards:

Awards in any category/sub-category shall be limited to first, second and third places and honorable mention. There can be only one first, second or third place awarded in any category/sub-category -- no ties. Judges may decide the number of awards to give within these limits. Awards will be given only if the judge deems them merited. Judges' decisions are final.

APW traditionally awards certificates or other tokens for all winners in the state contest. Sweepstakes winners also have their name engraved on a permanent plaque displayed at APW events.

Return of entries:

Entries which do not go on to the national contest may be picked up at the APW spring awards banquet. All entries in the national contest are considered a donation to NFPW and will not be returned.

Do not enter irreplaceable items in the contest. The risk of loss through multiple shipments from office to judges and back again and on to the conference site is great. Entrants NEVER should send a "one-and-only" entry. Duplicate all slides, audiovisuals, audiotapes, Zip disks, CDs, etc.

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