Peter Preston, chairman of the Preparatory Committee, explains that “the point of these awards is to honour the highest quality journalism we can find in the 47 countries of Europe during 2013. Often such quality crosses category boundaries. That’s why the search for the four main awards is drawn as widely as possible.”
The four categories cover as far as possible the fundamental components of journalism, and there is a possibility of a judges special award this year – perhaps for a “brilliant runner-up in an existing category, perhaps something that sits outside the boundaries…” Entries are being accepted through 29 November.
The Innovation Award is particularly exciting in regards to looking into journalism’s future; last year’s prize was won by Paul Lewis, Special Projects Editor at the Guardian, for his research study into the causes of the summer riots in 2011 in England, which combined “investigative journalism and scientific methodology,” developing “a unique new approach to investigative journalism.”