Deadline: January 31, 2020
Applications are open for the Victor K. McElheny Award 2020. The Victor K. McElheny award honors outstanding coverage of science, public-health, technology, and environmental issues at the local or regional level. Each year, the award honors a single entry — be it a series or standalone piece.
To encourage wide participation, they define “local or regional” broadly. Only outlets with a large staff and emphasis on a national audience will be excluded. They will accept entries on local or state-level topics from newspapers, small magazines and digital sites, broadcasters, podcasters, even bloggers.
The Victor K. McElheny award was made possible by the generous support of Victor K. McElheny and his wife, Ruth McElheny, and by the Rita Allen Foundation.
Award
- One winning work will receive a $5,000 prize. The winner(s) of the $5,000 prize will be honored at a ceremony at MIT in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Eligibility
Entries for the Victor K. McElheny award may be submitted by an individual or by a representative of a publication. An entry may consist of a single story or a series of up to three stories on a single theme. An individual or publication may enter no more than three separate submissions.
Entries for the 2020 McElheny Award must:
- Include substantial reporting on issues relating to science, public health, technology, or the environment;
- Have been produced with significant contributions from a local or regional media outlet;
- Have been published during the 2019 calendar year;
- Have been published in a U.S.-based media outlet;
- Have been published in English or — if published in a different language — accompanied by an English translation.
Judging and Selection
Submissions will be judged by a panel of distinguished science journalists. Emphasis will be put on investigative, community-service, and compelling narrative journalism that breaks new ground and makes a difference. In the words of Victor McElheny: “Reporting for regional news organizations is often the way for beginning science journalists to cut their teeth. The prize can help illustrate a continuing contribution to the maximum level of public understanding of what technology and science are achieving, and what these achievements imply for humanity.”
Application
Submissions for the Victor K. McElheny Award should be accompanied by a 300-word statement of the significance and impact of the nominated work. Entrants may upload their work using the specified file formats or provide a permanent URL.
For more information, visit Victor K. McElheny Award.
