The Minnesota Professional Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists (MN SPJ) recognizes the best in Minnesota journalism each year with its annual Page One Awards.
Journalists working for all print, broadcast and online news outlets in Minnesota (or news outlets in neighboring states that cover Minnesota) are eligible to enter. All work published or broadcast during the 2011 calendar year is eligible. Entries must be submitted by Monday, Feb. 13, 2012. The fee is $20 per entry.
Contest winners will be honored at MN SPJ’s Page One Banquet, an annual spring event celebrating excellence in Minnesota journalism.
MN SPJ encourages collegiate journalists to enter student work in SPJ’s Mark of Excellence Awards. Submission deadline for that contest is January 25, 2012.
Entries must be submitted no later than Monday, Feb. 13, 2012.
All work published or broadcast during the 2011 calendar year is eligible.
Journalists (including freelancers and contract employees) working for all print, broadcast and online news outlets in Minnesota (or news outlets in neighboring states that cover Minnesota) are eligible to enter.
We encourage collegiate journalists to enter student work in SPJ’s Mark of Excellence Awards. Submission deadline is January 25, 2012.
An individual can submit only one entry per category. Exceptions: 1) if a second entry is a multiple-byline entry; or 2) if it is submitted by his/her employer because they could not agree on a single entry.
Entries will be judged by journalism professionals outside Minnesota.
Judges may move an entry from one category to another.
Up to three winners may be chosen for each category. Judges may choose not to name a winner in any category.
Entries will not be returned.
Awards Presentation: Winners will be announced in the spring of 2012 and honored during MN SPJ’s annual Page One Awards Banquet. Date and location, TBD.
Minnesota SPJ also honored long-time First Amendment and public access champion Jane Kirtley with the 2011 Peter S. Popovich Award for Freedom of Information. Kirtley is director of the Silha Center for the Study of Media Ethics and Law. She is an outspoken advocate for the public’s right to access government to hold elected and administrative officials accountable. She pushes for openness and transparency in the United States and abroad. She recently returned from Azerbaijan where she advocated for American First Amendment-style reforms for the struggling government.
“There isn’t one single event or action that we as a board could point to in nominating Jane for this award, but rather her impressive body of work, throughout her career, is worthy of notice,” said Minnesota SPJ President Sarah Bauer at Tuesday evening’s award banquet.
Governor Mark Dayton was the keynote speaker at the annual Page One Banquet, where the winners were announced. Dayton spoke about the need to protect Minnesota’s education system, his frustration with what he portrays as inflexible freshmen Republican legislators, and his surprise at the media interest in his dog, Wanamingo.
About the Page One Awards
The Minnesota Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists honors the best in journalism each year with the Page One Awards. The entries are all shipped to different cities for judging to avoid conflict of interest. The 2011 awards entries were judged in Seattle, Detroit and Connecticut.
Minnesota SPJ would like to thank everyone who made the 2011 Page One Awards a huge success. You may download a full list of winners, below (in Excel or Word format).
We’re pleased to announce that, thanks to the generosity of attendees, we raised nearly $2,400 for our student scholarship fund at the 2011 Silent Auction.
If you would like to order duplicate awards, or have any questions, please contact Minnesota SPJ at minnesota.spj@gmail.com.
INDIANAPOLIS – The Society of Professional Journalists is pleased to name Minnesota Public Radio News as the recipient of its New America Award, which honors work that explores and exposes issues of importance to immigrant or ethnic communities living in the U.S.
The entry, “Civil War Kids: Young Somalis in Minnesota,” was chosen based on the extensive work of Laura Yuen, Laura McCallum and Mike Edgerly. The three-part series offers a timely and unflinching look at the continuing violence rippling throughout Minnesota’s Somali community, as well as the vulnerabilities, challenges and triumphs of its youth.
The first part of the series focuses on both gang violence and the radicalization of a small segment of young men in the Twin Cities. The second piece explores the rarely discussed issue of mental health in the community and the post-traumatic stress from the experiences of war. The final installment sheds light the successes of young Somali-Americans who are thriving in school and giving back to the local community. Continue reading →
The Minnesota Professional Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists (MN SPJ) recognizes the best in Minnesota journalism each year with its annual Page One Awards.