Deadline approaching for Bruce Jesson Journalism Awards nominations

Calls for nominations for the Bruce Jesson Journalism Awards will close at the end of the month (30 June). Two awards are offered each year, including one for senior journalists and one for "emerging" student journalists in New Zealand. The award is aimed at promoting critical, analytical journalism that will contribute to public debate on important issues in New Zealand.

Press Release

The Bruce Jesson Foundation was established in 1999 to commemorate one of New Zealand’s greatest political journalists, the late Bruce Jesson, by promoting vigorous political, social and economic investigation, debate, analysis and reporting in New Zealand. To this end, the Foundation holds an annual lecture and sponsors two annual Bruce Jesson Journalism Prizes for ‘Senior’ and ‘Emerging’ journalists respectively.

The Senior Journalism Prize offers an emolument of up to NZ$3,000 to assist writers aiming to produce the kind of critical and analytical journalism exemplified by Jesson’s work as a columnist in Metro magazine, as editor of The Republican and as the author of several influential pieces of book journalism. The prize is a self-nominated award dedicated to in-depth journalism projects on public issues that might not be undertaken, completed, or published without non-commercial subsidy.

The Emerging Journalism Prize recognises “outstanding recent work by New Zealand print journalism students.” It shares the senior award’s broad aim of seeking "critical, informed, analytical and creative journalism or writing which will contribute to public debate in New Zealand on an important issue or issues," but it differs in three important respects:

• It is focused more narrowly on the already published work of print journalism students (though, exceptional unpublished work may occasionally be considered).

• It seeks nominations from heads of New Zealand Journalism Schools or journalism programme leaders rather than from the student journalists themselves.

• It offers a fixed emolument of NZ$500, together with certificates of commendation for one or more runners-up.

Nominations for the 2010 Bruce Jesson Journalism Prizes are hereby sought from either the writers themselves in the case of the senior journalism award, or from heads of New Zealand journalism schools or journalism programme leaders in the case of the emerging journalism award. Nominees’ work will be assessed by members of the Jesson Foundation’s Journalism Subcommittee: Jon Stephenson (convener), Joe Atkinson, Simon Collins and Pacific Media Centre director David Robie.

Nominations together with appropriate supporting documentation including, for the emerging journalism award, copies of the nominated articles, should be forwarded by Monday, June 30, 2010 to Dr Joe Atkinson, Secretary of the Bruce Jesson Foundation by email j.atkinson@auckland.ac.nz, or in hard copy c/- Political Studies Department, University of Auckland, PB 92019, AUCKLAND.

Further inquiries to Dr Atkinson by mail or email as above or by phone (09) 373 7599 ext. 88094, or to AUT's Pacific Media Centre director Associate Professor David Robie by email delaro@clear.net.nz or phone (09) 921 9999 extn 7834
______________________________________________________

Patron: Professor Noam Chomsky
Chair: Professor Jane Kelsey
Secretary: Dr Joe Atkinson

Bruce Jesson Foundation