News

Deadline: September 30, 2020

The prize fund is 1500 euros

The deadline for “Education for Changes – Journalism Competition” is approaching. September 30 is the deadline for applications.

It will be clear in October which journalistic materials will be selected as winners by the professional jury. The jury will also decide how to distribute the prize fund of 1500 euros.

The details of the competition were presented during the online information meeting held at the Media Center.

“Education for Changes – Journalism Competition” is held in the framework of “For Human Rights. Education in Penitentiary Institutions” program.

The project is implemented in the Republic of Armenia by DVV International Armenia in cooperation with the Public Journalism Club (PJC) NGO.

The speakers of the online information meeting were Misha Tadevosyan, Representative of DVV International-Armenia,  Gayane Hovakimyan, Deputy Director of the Legal Education and Rehabilitation Program Implementation Center of the RA Ministry of Justice, Lilit Hovhannisyan, Coordinator of Media Center, journalist, Alexander Martirosyan, PJC Communications Officer.

The journalistic competition was announced on May 10. All the articles that were prepared/published in 2019 can be submitted to the competition. January – September 2020.

Journalists as well as convicts and detainees, including the former ones, can participate in the journalism competition. In the case of these applicants, the materials do not have to be published.

Misha Tadevosyan informed that the program is implemented in four countries: Armenia, Belarus, Moldova, Ukraine within the framework of the Eastern Partnership and the Central Asia International Prison Education Network with the financial support of the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “The program is multi-component, includes capacity building of NGOs, implementation of small grant programs in penitentiaries, as well as a journalism competition. We urge the journalists to cover the educational programs implemented within the framework of the mentioned program in Vardashen, Nubarashen and Artik penitentiaries within the framework of the mentioned program, presenting the processes taking place in these penitentiaries,” said Misha Tadevosyan.

Gayane Hovakimyan, Deputy Director of the “Legal Education and Rehabilitation Programs Implementation Center” SNCO of the RA Ministry of Justice, considered the success stories to be encouraging. “I would like the problem presented to the public to be really very sensitive, emotional. If I were to evaluate myself, I would take into account how sincere the material is, how much it can affect the society, what changes it will bring to the society, among the readers, what steps will be taken in the relevant bodies, in their policy.”

The speakers used human stories, materials with new tools, innovative, creative presentation.

Criteria for evaluating journalistic materials are: compliance with the thematic direction of the competition, identification of problems, identification, investigation and consistent coverage, objectivity and balance of views, reliable presentation of facts, compliance with the rules of journalistic ethics, creative approach to material presentation, innovative/creative tools, structural integrity of the material, reference to personal / real / life stories.

The winning materials will be translated into English and Russian and published on the website of the International Prison Education Network. Each author can submit a maximum of three articles in the same or different categories.

The video of the information meeting is available here.