Greetings to my fellow journalists!

It’s that time again. And I don’t mean the holiday season. I’m here instead to remind you – and encourage you – to enter this year’s Press Club contest for the Best Journalism in Arizona.

Take a look right away at the attached rules and categories. Our deadline comes early this year: All submissions must be postmarked by Jan. 20. 

We’ve made other changes, too. We understand that fewer journalists are working in Arizona today, yet more are writing for the Web. To reflect those changes, we’ve reduced the overall number of categories – even as we’re offering new ones to honor Internet-based journalism, including three new blog categories.

Ultimately, we’ve come to believe that, in 2009, content matters – not the medium by which it’s disseminated. So, other than our usual categories for Spanish-language publications, this year’s contest separates writing, design, and photography into just two broad-based groups:

·         ·  “Non-Metro” categories are intended for publications with fewer resources: all daily newspapers with 20,000 circulation or fewer; non-daily publications, including magazines, with circulation of 50,000 or fewer; and Internet-only publications.

·         ·  “Metro” categories are intended for everyone else: alt-weeklies; larger newspapers and magazines; and experienced journalists working at Internet-only publications.

For the first time this year, we are also offering “Best in Arizona” categories to honor the best in Criticism, Arts Writing, Investigative Reporting and Editorial Writing, among others. These are open to any working journalist in Arizona, period, so be sure to check them out.

We understand not everyone will like these changes. But please be aware that even during this time of upheaval, the Arizona Press Club remains devoted to honoring the best journalism in this state. If you think we can do something better, let us know. We’re open to suggestions.

Happy entering!

Sarah Fenske, president
Arizona Press Club