THE DETAILS

WHO MAY ENTER
Representatives from or journalists working for:
Daily, weekly and monthly newspapers;
Magazines (general interest or organizational);
Television stations;
Radio stations;
Internet-based news organizations that publish or broadcast news in an eligible state or states (except for categories 28-31);
Freelance journalists who publish work in one the eligible states.

Online media outlets are welcome to compete in the division they feel is most appropriate. Questions about this can be sent to greatplainsawards@gmail.com.

ELIGIBILITY PERIOD
All entries must have been published or broadcast between January 1 and December 31, 2022.

CONTENT ELIGIBILITY
Entries must have been published or broadcast in one of the eight eligible states in the contest time period. Local journalists who are published or broadcast in an outlet outside of the eight states are welcome to enter those works in categories 28-31.
Entrants who send in URLs — and in all online categories — should keep their site intact and accessible until May. If a site is behind a paywall, a username and password must be included with every entry.

ENTRIES
Entries must be made at betternewspapercontest.com and must be received by Feb. 8 for consideration.
Entries that do not provide complete and accurate URLs can be disqualified.
Entries can be submitted by organizations or by individuals working full time, part-time or on a freelance basis. Freelancers' work should be published in states eligible for the contest (except for categories 28-31).
The same story, series or photo may be submitted in more than one category. Each entry requires a separate entry fee.
Publications and individuals are not limited to the number of entries they can submit.

Entries should be submitted in one of the following manners:
STORIES: A URL link to the story is preferred. A PDF of the work and accompanying material is acceptable if a URL is unavailable. For purposes of the Great Plains Awards winners book, finalists in each category will be asked to submit the text of their story if it cannot be copied from the entry provided.
Design/headline writing: PDFs of the original pages should be submitted.
PHOTO CATEGORIES: JPEGs of the photos or PDFs of the photos as published should be submitted.
Video/multimedia/website: An MP4 or URL to the entry should be submitted.

CATEGORY VIABILITY
If the Great Plains Journalism Committee deems a category not viable due to an insufficient number of entries, it may cancel the category or merge it with a similar category.
The Great Plains Journalism Awards Committee reserves the right to use any part or the whole entry for publicity or educational purposes. Credit will be given to the submitting news organization.

ENTRY FEES/SCHOLARSHIPS
The entry fee is $25 per entry.
Students may enter any professional category but must pay the $25 entry fee to compete in professional categories. Student-only categories (62-70) are $15 to enter.
Five student categories — Student Designer of the Year, Student Photographer of the Year, Student Editor of the Year, Student Writer of the Year and Student Broadcaster of the Year — will include a Dan Harrison Memorial Scholarship component. Winners of each category are eligible for a $2,000 scholarship paid directly to the student.
Entry fees can be paid at https://www.tulsapressclub.org/event-sponsorships-tickets by credit card or PayPal. If paying by check, call the Tulsa Press Club at 918-583-7737. Entry fees must be paid or arrangements for fees must be made by Feb. 3, 2023.

JUDGING
The Great Plains organizing committee will select distinguished journalists outside of the eight-state contest region to serve as judges. Names of judges will be announced after the contest period end.
Finalists will be announced in each category, and winners will be announced in the spring.

AWARDS
One trophy for Best Of awards will be presented per winning entry.
One plaque will be presented per winning entry. More trophies or plaques may be ordered at cost from the Tulsa Press Club.

ACCURACY REQUIREMENT
Any corrections, clarifications or retractions made after initial publishing or broadcast must be submitted as part of the entry. Also, copies of any written challenges to the report’s accuracy sent to the entrant or the news organization by or on behalf of those mentioned — including but not limited to letters, e-mails or legal papers — must be included with the entry. Any responses by the news organization must also be included.