The first annual $100,000 of Awards for News Reporting will present four $25,000 awards for the most fair, impartial, objective news reporting that has the courage to not fear and the discipline to not favor.
In announcing the awards program, WHECO Media CEO Walter E. Hussman, Jr. said: "As you probably know, we have been dismayed at the continuing drop in the lack of trust in news reporting in America. While this applies more to the national news outlets than local ones, I think it’s a problem for all of us and for America. That is why we began publishing our statement of core values seven years ago in 2017 every day on page 2 to let our readers know what our journalistic standards are. It was the main reason we made the donation to the University of North Carolina school of journalism in 2019, thinking if we could get one of the top journalism schools in America to endorse these values, other journalism schools might follow. Unfortunately they haven’t. And very few other news organizations have published their statement of core journalistic values.
"To further the goal of trying to enhance the public trust in news reporting, our family has trademarked the name Center for Integrity in News Reporting. So far it’s in its infancy. We have not yet incorporated it, do not yet have a board of trustees, and we have not decided on whether to make it a 501 (c)(3) organization. But we have decided to move forward with one initiative: four national journalism awards, which reward fair, impartial, objective news reporting in 2023. These four awards will be $25,000 each, and to cover all media, there will be one for print, one for broadcast, one for cable, television reporting, and one for digital. The Pulitzer Prizes are $15,000 each, so hopefully just the monetary amount will attract interest. We think it’s important to reward people who do exemplary work in what has traditionally been regarded as the most respected news reporting in America."
March 1 is the deadline for entries.
For details on entering, email journalismawards@unc.edu
The contest will be judged by Newspaper Association Managers.
