WSCIJ Invites Entries for the 16th Edition of its Investigative Reporting Awards

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Motunrayo Alaka
WSCIJ’s Executive Director/CEO

The Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism (WSCIJ), a media development and freedom of expression non-governmental organization, is inviting entries from Nigerian journalists to apply for the 16th edition of its annual Investigative Reporting Awards.

The award is open to interested Nigerian professional reporter or team of reporters (fulltime or freelancers), who are 18-years and above, have published stories either online, in print, or through electronic media, primarily targeted at and received by a Nigerian audience

Submitted entries must be stories that were published between October 4, 2020 and October 3, 2021. They will be coded by WSCIJ to conceal the identity of authors and their media houses and scored by an independent board of judges.

The main criterion for eligibility is that works submitted (single work or single-subject serial) must involve reporting on public, and or corporate corruption, human rights violation, or on the failure of regulatory agencies. The story should reflect a high quality of investigation in terms of newsworthiness, capacity to expose or prevent clandestine activities, corruption in the public domain, and an understanding of human rights implications enhanced by the quality of presentation.

Eligible works must have been first published or broadcast in a Nigerian media between October 2020 and October 3, 2021.

The board of judges is comprised of seasoned media practitioners, academic and journalism veterans with a good understanding of investigative reporting and its public policy implications.

The award which is a flagship programme of WSCIJ was first held in 2005 to build a culture of investigative reporting in the Nigerian media and honour journalists who expose public or corporate corruption, human rights abuses and regulatory failures.

The WSCIJ has remained committed to rewarding best practices in the media through the award which has produced 102 finalists, 52 Soyinka Laureates, and 11 investigative journalists of the year.

For more information about entry criteria, please visit the application portal at https://award.wscij.org/. Entries, including relevant documents should be submitted online at https://award.wscij.org/award-entry-form/. The deadline for submission of entries is October 24, 2021 by 4 pm West African Time.