Submissions for 3rd Amir Ahmad Siddiqui Media Awards due by January 31

PESHAWAR: The five-member judges committee for the 3rd Amir Ahmed Siddiqui Media Awards has invited entries for the contest by January 31, 2018.

According to a press release issued on Friday, journalists based in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Federally Administered Tribal Areas are eligible to participate in the contest.

According to the judges’ decision, the journalistic work to be submitted for the competition must have appeared in local or foreign media from January 1, 2017 to December 31, 2017, with datelines anywhere in KP or Fata.

Headed by senior journalist Rahimullah Yousufzai, the committee would accept, for consideration, one entry each from every contestant for the following categories:

Best investigative Urdu news story/feature, best investigative English news story/feature, best investigative Urdu feature (from Fata and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s districts other than Peshawar), best radio package (Urdu and Pashto), best newspaper picture and best news television package.

Winners would get trophies and prize money of Rs 25,000 each. However, the television package award, according to the judges, will involve a total prize money of Rs 50,000 to be divided equally among the winning television reporter and the cameraman.

The committee has also decided to introduce two new awards for existing journalism students/graduates of journalism schools with one year work experience in the field of journalism.

The winners would get prize money of Rs 5,000 each, certificates and sets of journalism books.

Besides, there would be two awards this year for veteran journalists of Peshawar of whom one each would be nominated for the life time achievement award, and the award for exceptional services to journalism in KP or Fata.

Apart from Rahimullah Yusafzai, the committee includes Dawn (North) Editor, Ismail Khan, academician and media consultant Abdullah Jan, Resident Director, Aurat Foundation, Shabina Ayaz; and chairman of the Mass Communication Department, University of Peshawar, Faizullah Jan.

The media awards, being held for the third consecutive year, have been named after Amir Ahmad Siddiqui late, a veteran journalist from Peshawar.

A combined effort of his family and a group of senior journalists of Peshawar, the awards aim to encourage and promote quality and competitive journalism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Fata.

According to the press release, submissions to the contest can be electronically mailed to the following email address: aasaward2017@gmail.com.

Detailed criteria for each of the categories covered under the competition can be obtained from the president of Khyber Union of Journalists, Saiful Islam, or from the awards’ facebook page.