Submissions for Amir Siddiqui Media Awards invited

PESHAWAR: The submissions for the 2nd Amir Ahmad Siddiqui Media Awards for 2016 have been invited from intending contestants from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, according to a press release. 

The awards, aiming at the promotion of ethical and competitive journalism in KP and FATA, involve six categories this year. They include Best Investigative News Story (Print/ Urdu), Best Investigative News Story (Print/English), Best Television Report, Best Radio Package, Best Column/Feature (Urdu/English), and Best Picture of the Year.

Journalists from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Fata are encouraged and eligible to send their submissions by February 15, 2017. Their journalistic work datelined Peshawar or any other part of the province and Fata will be eligible for the contest. The entries to the contest should have appeared in local, regional, national and international media during 2016 (from January 1 to December 31). The press release said the winners will receive cash prizes of Rs25,000 each and mementos for their work. The Best Television Report Award involves total prize money of Rs50,000 of which Rs25,000 will go to the reporter for investigative reporting and Rs25,000 to the cameraman for quality camerawork. 

It said a six-member committee of internationally recognized media professionals, acclaimed academicians and human rights activists from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have consented to review the submissions and determine the winner.

Rahimullah Yusufzai, Editor (North), The News International, is the head of the six-member judges’ panel. The other members of the committee include Ismail Khan, Editor (North), Dawn Group of Newspapers, Dr. Altaf Ullah Khan, Chairman Department of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of Peshawar, Shabina Ayaz, Regional Head (Peshawar), Aurat Foundation, Abdullah Jan, media professional and former Bureau Chief of Geo TV, Peshawar, and Aurangzeb, trainer/media professional from Peshawar.

The awards, named after the late Amir Ahmad Siddiqui, a founding member of the Peshawar Press Club, are a collaborative effort on the part of media professionals from Peshawar, senior members of the Peshawar Press Club and Khyber Union of Journalists to create a healthy and competitive professional environment for the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Fata journalists. 

The names of the winners of the 2016 media awards will be announced by March 15, 2017 and the prizes will be distributed in a ceremony at Peshawar on March 30, 2017.

The contestants will be required to send three entries to each of the categories they intend to apply for. They will be required to provide the original printed copies of their newspaper stories/photo- graphs/columns and features. They will also be required to provide soft copies (electronic version / CDs) of their printed work (news stories/photo- graphs/columns and features).

The contestants for the radio and television packages’ categories will also be required to submit three best packages for each of the two categories they intend to apply to. They will be required to submit their entries on CDs or USBs. The applicants will be eligible to apply for more than one category covered under the awards for 2016.

The entries will be received from January 1, 2017 to February 15, 2017 between 10:00 am and 5:00 pm on the weekdays (except Sunday) at Sadiq Commission Agency, 9-A Khyber Bazaar, Peshawar.