European Commission Directorate General for Inte : Terms and conditions

Lorenzo Natali Media Prize 2015

1. Applications for the 2015 edition of the Lorenzo Natali Media Prize must be submitted by 31 August 2015, 23:59:59 Central European Time (CET). The application form can be accessed in the Register(link is external) section of this website.

2. To enter, professional and amateur journalists must upload their own original journalistic work- either individually or, for jointly authored or produced items, as a group.

The participants must be the authors and holders of the copyright and the moral rights of their work. Plagiarism, which includes the unauthorised use of the language and thoughts of another author and the representation of them as one's own, will result in disqualification.

3. Journalists can enter the Lorenzo Natali Media Prize under two categories: professional journalist and amateur journalist. The eligibility criteria for both categories are defined hereunder:

Professional journalist:

• Hold a press card and/or;
• Submit a journalistic piece for the Prize that has been published/broadcasted by a press organisation/media outlet;

Amateur journalists:

• Do not comply with the above criteria to enter as professional journalists.

4. All entries must have been published (print or online), broadcasted[1] or have appeared in an agency dispatch for the first time between 1 September 2014 and 31 of August 2015.

5. Only one item or one extract from a series of journalistic works (i.e. one article or one radio/ TV piece) can be entered. Submission of more than one entry will result in the disqualification of the journalist and all his/her entries.

6. Entries must have been published in one of five regions[2] : Africa; the Arab World and the Middle East; Asia and the Pacific; Europe; Latin America and the Caribbean[3].

7. The entry (article or audio-visual material) must address development and/or poverty eradication, and touches upon the developing world [4]. Opinion articles are not eligible.

8. There is no character limit to written stories. There is no minimum length requirement. Please upload the full-length piece.

There is no limit to the size of audio-visual work. If the size of the audio-visual work exceeds the upload capacity of the website, please share a link to the piece on YouTube or another platform or send a DVD.

9. An article, online piece or blog can be submitted in any language.

• If it is written in one of the 24 official European Union languages, journalists are required to submit a summary in English. The summary should be carefully written as it will be key for pre-selection. The length of the summary should range between 200 and 400 words.
• To enter an article that is not in one of the 24 official European Union languages, journalists are required to provide a translation in English or French or Spanish of the article in addition to the summary in English. The summary should be carefully written as it will be key for pre-selection. The length of the summary should range between 200 and 400 words.

10. Audio-visual entries (TV and Radio) can be in any language.

• If they are in one of the 24 official languages of the European Union, are required to provide a summary in English. The summary should be carefully written as it will be key for pre-selection. The length of the summary should range between 200 and 400 words.
• To enter a script that is not in one of the 24 official European Union languages, journalists are required to upload a translation in English or French or Spanish in addition to the summary in English. The summary should be carefully written as it will be key for pre-selection. The length of the summary should range between 200 and 400 words.

11. Entries will be assessed on: relevance to development and poverty eradication; originality of approach; professional quality and investigative depth.

12. All entries will go through a phase of pre-selection. The top ten journalistic pieces in each category will be given to an independent Grand Jury. The jury will consist of seven people who are recognised figures in journalism, development and poverty eradication. The jury will choose the final winners. The decision of the jury shall be final.

13. Two prizes (one per category) will be awarded in each of the five regions. A Grand Prize will be awarded to one of the ten regional winners for the best piece of journalism. The 10 winners will receive a trophy and prize of €5 000. On top of that, the winner of the Grand Prize, will receive a trophy and €5 000.

14. The European Commission has the right to reproduce and disseminate the works submitted in its own publications and in publicity material for the Lorenzo Natali Prize, including through its website and by any other means necessary to promote the Prize.

15. Laureates cannot enter the Prize the year following their award, but are eligible for subsequent editions. Articles written by current members of staff of the European Union institutions, people involved in the pre-selection process, the jury or ICF Mostra communications agency will not be considered. These people can enter three years after leaving their position.

16. By submitting an entry, those applying agree to be bound by the competition rules and terms & conditions, including assurance on the copyright of entries.

17. No supporting documents will be returned to participants.

18. The Lorenzo Natali Media Prize is subject to data protection regulation by the European Commission. More information: http://ec.europa.eu/geninfo/legal_notices_en.htm

Further explanations and answers to frequently asked questions can be foundhere.

[1] More specific information on the publication criteria in the FAQ

[2] More specific information on the publication criteria in the FAQ

[3] More specific information on the regions in the FAQ

[4] Developing countries are countries where Directorate General for International Cooperation and Development provides development assistance. More information here: https://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/home_en.