Washington, DC (July 7, 2000) -- The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is seeking entries for the new online category in its Science Journalism Awards competition, sponsored by The Whitaker Foundation. The awards recognize science writers for outstanding reporting for a general audience and honor those individuals for their coverage of the sciences, engineering and mathematics.
The addition of the online news category for the 2000 competition reflects the growing media for science journalism. Since the creation of the competition 50 years ago, news reports have expanded to consist of analysis, commentary and features, while publishing, broadcasting and the Internet have produced new methods of information exchange, both local and global.
With an increasing number of Web sites devoted to disseminating information and the growing number of reporters who write for online sites, this new category will be an important one for reporters on the cutting edge of science journalism. The online category will lend support and recognition to those who seek to apply the same standards of journalistic excellence in this new and changing medium
The online news category will join its five counterparts--large newspapers, small newspapers, radio, television and magazine--in this year's competition. The rules governing the online awards will remain consistent with the rules already established for the science journalism awards. The award winners will be honored at the AAAS Annual Meeting in San Francisco, Calif., in February 2001.
Contest Rules
How to Submit an Online Entry
The AAAS Science Journalism Awards represent the pinnacle of achievement for science journalists. The awards have honored more than 300 individuals over the last 50 years. Winners have written stories on life, physical and social science; engineering and mathematics; and policy issues that are grounded in science and technology. Independent screening and judging committees comprised of scientists and science journalists select the winning entries, which are published each year and used as teaching tools in science writing programs at universities and colleges throughout the country.
AAAS is the world's largest general science organization with more than 138,000 members and 275 affiliated science and engineering societies. AAAS conducts a variety of national and international programs in the areas of education, career development and science policy. The association also publishes the weekly, peer-reviewed journal Science, and administers the online news service EurekAlert! ( http://www.eurekalert.org ), featuring the latest discoveries in science, medicine and technology.
EDITOR'S NOTE: To receive an entry form, contact Daryl Thomas at 202-326-6656 or dthomas@aaas.org .
Or visit the Web site at http://www.aaas.org/news/jawards.html .