Time to start thinking about entering the new 2013 CAJ Awards categories

OTTAWA, Oct. 16, 2013 /CNW/ - The Canadian Association of Journalists invites all working journalists whose work has been or will be published or broadcast in Canada during this calendar year to start getting ready to enter the revised 2013 CAJ Awards.

Meeting in Toronto Oct. 5-6, the CAJ board approved several changes to the CAJ Awards program that have led to the renaming and revision of several categories and the introduction of a new category dedicated to investigative journalism published exclusively online. The CAJ Awards committee will begin accepting entries for the 2013 program before the end of this calendar year—look for another notice once the entry period has begun.

"The CAJ is responding to feedback received from journalists who've been entering our awards. We hope the resulting changes are a better fit with the sort of journalism being produced in Canada in 2013," CAJ president Hugo Rodrigues said. "In addition to the new online-only category, more of our categories are platform-agnostic to recognize the multi-faceted way we present news and information to our audiences."

Details about the new online-only category, along with the revisions to previous categories, are available on the CAJ website. The CAJ is also proud to announce it's holding the line on entry fees for CAJ members submitting individual entries at $30, including taxes. Non-member individual fees also remain unchanged at $110, as does a fee of $0 for any student member entering in the student category. New flat-rate fees - for CAJ-member and non-member teams - have been established to simplify team entries.

The 2013 CAJ Awards will be presented at the awards gala and 2014 CAJ conference banquet, scheduled for May 10, 2014, in Vancouver, B.C. More information on the conference will be released in the coming weeks.

The CAJ Awards committee is always seeking experienced journalists to volunteer as judges—particularly those who are bilingual and able to consider entries in both official languages. To volunteer, please contact us. Any experienced journalist is welcome to judge a category where she or he is not eligible to compete.

The CAJ is Canada's largest national professional organization for journalists from all media, representing over 500 members across the country. The CAJ's primary roles are to provide high-quality professional development for its members and public-interest advocacy.

SOURCE: Canadian Association of Journalists

Hugo Rodrigues, CAJ president - 519-756-2020 ext. 2226, 519-535-8680 cell, [email protected]

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