ENTRY GUIDELINES - Atlantic Journalism Awards

Important Dates:

• Online Entries open March 05, 2025.
• Entry Deadline - Midnight, April 05, 2025.
• Entry Deadline for Atlantic Journalism Hall of Fame entries are open until midnight, April 05, 2025.

STEP 1: Review the Rules for Entry

1. Competition is open to any journalist or news organization in Atlantic Canada.
2. Nominations will be accepted for work completed in 2024.
3. Check category definitions to see how many entries can be made per journalist.
4. Journalists working and living in Atlantic Canada can enter their work even if it only appears or is broadcast outside the region.
5. Journalists acting as judges for the Atlantic Journalism Awards may not enter a category they are judging.
6. Entries are not allowed from full or part-time employees of the Atlantic Journalism Awards.
7. All entries become the property of the Atlantic Journalism Awards and will not be returned.
8. Finalists may be asked to supply a digital photo.
9. By submitting the story/item the submitter agrees that the AJAs can use the material for inclusion in an Audio Visual and may also have it available on its web site for public viewing.

JUDGING/JUDGES

• Judges are approved by the Atlantic Journalism Awards Board of Directors. Judges are provided with and asked to follow the AJAs Judging Guidelines.
• There are usually three judges on each judging panel. All print judges are from outside the region and are selected for their own journalistic achievements and reputation in the category they are judging. Radio and television judges are from Atlantic Canada and are generally former electronic journalists with a high reputation for journalistic integrity.
• The radio and TV judging panels are balanced to represent both private and public journalists. All judges are named in the awards ceremony publicity.
• Representatives of the sponsoring companies are not involved in judging in any way.
• The judges' decisions are final.

STEP 2: Review the Award Categories

Please review the AJAS Award Categories and create a list of entries that you want to make. Remember; only consider work that has appeared in the 2024 calendar year, as outlined in the Rules for Entry.

Please note that you have to make a separate online submission for each entry that you intend to enter into the competition. The entry fee for each submission is $65.(no tax) and is made by credit card via the Stripe system.

Submissions must be made with the online system. Hardcopy entries are not allowed. If you are unable to complete this online entry procedure, email crystal@advocateprinting.com for help and instructions.

STEP 3: Start the Online Process

Submitting your award entry online is a simple process and we recommend you review the procedure well before the April 05, 2025 deadline.

You must set up a new account each year. Last year's account will not work for security reasons.

You have to select the Award Category for which you want to make a submission, supply us with the name of the report and some basic information, as well as your contact information including your email address and the email address of the nominated journalist.

You will then be asked to pay for your entry via Stripe which accepts major credit cards.

Once you have submitted the information outlined above, you will receive an e-mail that contains a link to a web page where you can complete your awards entry and upload your media file (See Step 5 below). This link will be active until the submission deadline and you can revisit that web page as many times as you want to either complete or modify your entry. Therefore, PLEASE KEEP THE E-MAIL IN YOUR FILES as you may need the link to revisit the page.

Depending on your computer system, the email may go to your Spam or Junk inbox. We suggest you add office@AJAs.ca to your email list.

STEP 4: Review the Technical Guidelines for permissible Media

Before you complete your Awards Entry as outlined in Step 5 below, we recommend that you review the Technical Guidelines in order to prepare the media file (print, online, sound or video) that you are required to upload prior to the submission deadline.

STEP 5: Complete your Award Entry and Upload your Media File

Using the web link provided to you in the e-mail message that was sent to you after you completed Step 3, you can complete your entry and upload your media file. This link will be active until the submission deadline and you can revisit that web page as many times as you want to either complete or modify your entry.

On that web page, you will be asked to answer some technical questions regarding your award submission like publication or air date, as well as a description of your entry objectives, results, and any noteworthy elements. Please note that your submission can only be entered in one category, not multiple categories.

Finally, you will be asked to upload your media file. Depending on the size of your file, this may take a while. Your uploaded file will be converted to Flash video by our system, processing of which will also take some time, but you do not need to remain on the web page during this process. On subsequent visits to this web page, you will be able to review/listen to the file that you have uploaded, and if desired, you may upload a revised file. The AJAs reviews all the entries in detail and will be in touch for any missing information.

Should you have any technical questions during this process, please use the Help Button located at the bottom of that web page. This will put you in direct contact with our technical staff, who will be pleased to assist.