The Kurt Schork Awards in International Journalism recognize independent and professional reporting that sheds new light on controversial issues. Established in 2002, two US$5,000 prizes are awarded each year, one to a local reporter in a developing country or nation in transition, and the other to a freelance journalist covering international news.
The stories can focus on conflict, human-rights concerns, cross-border issues, or any other issue of controversy in a particular country or region.
Underwritten by the Kurt Schork Memorial Fund and Reuters, and administered by the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, the prizes were created to honor Kurt Schork, an American freelance journalist who was killed in a military ambush while on assignment for Reuters on May 24, 2000, in Sierra Leone.
Who Can Apply?
Freelance Journalist: Freelance print journalists and those contracted by news organizations are eligible. A freelance journalist is an individual who is not employed by a news organization. They are self-employed, providing services, either on the basis of time or on the production of editorial materials as defined by individual contractual arrangements, and earn the majority of their income from journalistic activity.
Entries
The submissions must demonstrate professionalism, meet international journalistic standards, and provide evidence that courage and determination played a role in generating the articles. Winners will be chosen by an international panel of five judges.
Deadline: May 1, 2006
Details and Entry Forms: Available at http://www.jrn.columbia.edu/events/schork/submissions.asp