National Newspaper Awards open for entries for 2024 contest

Journalism in a language other than French or English can be entered in Special Topic, other categories

TORONTO – The National Newspaper Awards is now accepting entries for the 76th annual contest.

The contest is open to print or digital publications that publish at least five days a week. Smaller Canadian non-dailies that typically publish at least five days a week online — but may not always meet that threshold — are also eligible for the competition.

Entries will be accepted in 23 categories through Jan. 15, 2025.

The cost to enter this year’s competition remains $30 per submission. Finalists will be announced in mid-March, with winners named at an in-person gala on April 25 at The Marriott Chateau Champlain in Montreal. Tickets will be available for purchase next spring.

Journalism in languages other than French or English may be submitted in any category this year, as well as in the Special Topic category, which for the second year in a row is restricted to work done in a language other than French or English. 

The Photo Story category, also new last year, may now be entered on behalf of one or more photographers, provided the photos form a cohesive narrative. The other three photo categories for 2024 are: News Photo, Feature Photo and Sports Photo.

All entries must have been published first in 2024 by an eligible organization, with the work having been performed by an eligible entrant, as defined under the contest entry rules. Rules can be viewed here. Entry procedures can be viewed here, while tips on using the entry system can be found here. Categories can be viewed here.

While supporting letters are not mandatory for all categories, they are encouraged since they provide valuable context for judges. A video on how to write a supporting letter can be viewed here.

Work that does not fit neatly into the 23 categories, including work done by ineligible organizations such as Canadian broadcasters and magazines, may be eligible for a Special Recognition Citation. The Citation, awarded for the first time in 2022, is meant to open the door to experimentation in journalism: transcending categories, newsrooms and the industry. All types of journalism will be considered for the Citation, including text, video, audio, photos, graphics, newsletters and social media. Previous winners include Room Up Front (2022) and the Climate Disaster Project (2023).

Submissions for the Citation can be made by organizations that did the work or by members of the public. There is no entry fee for Citation nominations. Learn more about nominating work for a Citation here.

After opening for entries on Dec. 1, categories will be closed to entries on a staggered basis, with final deadlines as follows:

Arts and Entertainment: Thursday, Jan. 9

Beat Reporting (Joan Hollobon Award): Wednesday, Jan. 15

Breaking News (Stuart M. Robertson Award): Wednesday, Jan. 15

Business: Saturday, Jan. 11

Columns (Mary Ann Shadd Cary Award): Saturday, Jan. 11

Editorial Cartooning: Thursday, Jan. 9

Editorials (Claude Ryan Award): Thursday, Jan. 9

Explanatory Work: Saturday, Jan. 11

Feature Photo: Thursday, Jan. 9

News Photo: Monday, Jan. 13

International (Norman Webster Award): Monday, Jan. 13

Investigations (George Brown Award): Wednesday, Jan. 15

Local Reporting (E. Cora Hind Award): Saturday, Jan. 11

Long Feature (William Southam Award): Monday, Jan. 13

Photo Story: Wednesday, Jan. 15

Politics (John Wesley Dafoe Award): Monday, Jan. 13

Presentation/Design: Monday, Jan. 13

Project of the Year (John Honderich Award): Monday, Jan. 13

Short Feature (Bob Levin Award): Wednesday, Jan. 15

Special Topic (Journalism in a Language other than French or English): Wednesday, Jan. 15

Sports: Thursday, Jan. 9

Sports Photo: Saturday, Jan. 11

Sustained News Coverage: Monday, Jan. 13

Special Recognition Citation: Wednesday, Jan. 15

Sponsorship opportunities remain available for the in-person gala and for named awards. For information on either opportunity, contact Amanda Hansen at the coordinates below.

This is the 76th year for the awards program, and the 36th under the current administrative structure. The awards were established by the Toronto Press Club in 1949 to encourage excellence and reward achievement in daily newspaper work in Canada. The competition is now open to newspapers, news agencies and online news sites approved for entry by the NNA Board of Governors.

For more information, contact:

Bev Wake
Executive Director
National Newspaper Awards
exec@nna-ccj.ca
604-220-7254

Andria Samis
Program Director
National Newspaper Awards
info@nna-ccj.ca
416-738-3654

Amanda Hansen
Director of Sponsorships
National Newspaper Awards
promotion@nna-ccj.ca
819-583-9609