The National Association of Science Writers (NASW), based in the United States, is inviting entries from writers for the Science in Society Journalism Awards for investigative or interpretive reporting about the sciences and their impact on modern society. Entries should be works that have demonstrated innovative reporting that goes well beyond the science itself and into ethical problems and social implications for communities and society at large.
The Awards especially seek to recognize science writing shaped by various perspectives, because such writing enables writers to tell more broadly relevant stories that better serve readers and communities. The Society Journalism Awards also consider diversity in topics, sources, audience, and authors to be a critical component of excellence.
Beginning with the 2024 awards cycle, the Awards will be open to submissions from international publications and outlets. Eligible entries are English-language works first published or broadcast between January 1, 2023, and December 31, 2023. Works translated into English are not eligible for now. Categories are platform-independent. Self-published works such as blogs are eligible for the awards; unpublished works are not.
The awards are available in six categories: books, commentary, science reporting, science features, long-form narratives, and series.
To participate in the awards, entrants should create their entry and complete all steps of the online entry process by 11:59 p.m. Eastern on February 1, 2024. An entry is not complete until the entrant reaches the confirmation screen. Where applicable, entrants should mail any hardcopy books or media. Organisers however strongly encourage all material to be submitted in electronic format online.
Only online entries in the form of a PDF (maximum size 10 MB), (to minimize file size, embedded images should be JPG/JPEG, 96 DPI, which is sufficient for web resolution). Multimedia files: Audio: MP3, max 70 MB and Video: MPG or .WMV, max 70 MB or URL will be accepted. Except for the Books category and some broadcast content, all entry material must be uploaded online to be part of the entry.
While there is no submission fee for current members of NASW, entry fee for non-members and those entering on behalf of members but who are not members themselves is $45 per entry.
NASW will award separate cash prizes of $2,000 each for writing judged best in each of the categories. Only authors or producers listed on the original submission will be recognized by the awards, which will be announced in October 2024. In cases of multiple authors or producers, prize money will be split between the entrants at their discretion. However, the prize money is intended for content authors or producers, not publications or news organizations.
For full details about the awards and the rules, please visit the Call for Entries and Rules page.
NASW is a community of journalists, authors, editors, producers, public information officers, students and people who write and produce material intended to inform the public about science, health, engineering, and technology. NASW promotes the professional interests of science writers nationally and globally, plays an active role in supporting efforts to ensure writers are paid for their work, and advocates for copyright protections for writers.
