The Center for Scholastic Journalism at Kent State is happy to announce another contest – this one for high school student media programs anywhere in the U.S. The top entry will earn $500 for the school’s media program.
This award is offered in conjunction with the 15th annual Poynter KSU Ethics Workshop Sept. 19, 2019. “Act. Action. Activism?” explored the challenges journalists face covering activism yet still finding the balance between factual, unbiased reporting and advocacy.
- For our award, we’re looking for powerful storytelling, examples of student journalists using their voices to focus on activism that supports societal challenges and injustices. Storytelling can focus on problems, issues, grassroots movements, organized movements or individual examples of activism.
- These are not opinion pieces but news or news feature coverage. They can be print, web, video, other digital options.
- Entries must show the student-related context, not a global look at the issue – for instance, not what is happening to melting glaciers in Greenland with information from National Geographic, but how local teens have a campaign to deal with recycling cafeteria waste.
Entries must have been published/aired in the 2018 – 2019 or 2019-2020 school year and submitted through our online portal by 11:59 p.m. ET March 1, 2020. Only one entry per school should be submitted. Team submissions must include a concise explanation of the role and contributions of each team member. The results will be announced in April at Kent State University.
To see video of panels and speakers at the September workshop, particularly the keynote with two advisers from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, scroll to the bottom of the workshop main page. Also of interest might be lesson plans related to covering activism in student media, available for download, also near the bottom of the page. Simply input your email and you’ll receive the three plans. Questions? Email Candace Perkins Bowen cbowen@kent.edu