Mike Berger Award - How to Enter
Deadline for submissions is March 8, 2012
The Mike Berger Award honors in-depth human interest reporting on individuals in the tradition of the late Meyer "Mike" Berger. In 1950, Berger won a Pulitzer Prize for local reporting in The New York Times for his evocative 4,000-word story on the impact of a mass murderer's actions on the residents of Camden, N.J. For several years prior to his death in 1959, Berger's "About New York" column in the Times set the standard for thought-provoking human interest reporting about the lives of everyday people.
Newspaper, dailies, and weeklies, in addition to writers for newspaper magazines, and online reporters across the country are eligible for this award. Journalists who report in a foreign language should submit copies of original stories with an English translation. No entry fee is required.
Members of the faculty of the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism will judge the entries. The award, which consists of a certificate from Columbia and a $1,500 cash prize, will be conferred at the school's Journalism Day ceremony in May. The school will reimburse the winner's expenses for traveling to and staying overnight in New York.
Nominations
- A brief letter from the editor indicating the scope of the reporter's work.
- A brief biography of the reporter.
- A series must be designated as such by the publication when it is printed. A regular column may also be submitted as a series.
- A writer may submit up to five articles published in 2011 that best typify the reporter's work.
- Two CDs or DVDs should be submitted for multimedia presentations.
Uploading Items: ALL materials should be formatted and uploaded as PDFs. Supporting multimedia presentations can be sent on a CD or as URLs. Links must remain live.
The name of the photographer or graphic artist should appear on all entry forms for visual elements.
If you know a journalist who deserves to be recognized, please send us the completed nomination form and pertinent material.
Nominations must be signed by the person submitting it, along with that person's title, address, telephone, fax and e-mail address. Supporting material will not be returned.
Submissions must be postmarked no later than March 8, 2012.
Contact
Lisa S. Redd, Associate Director
Laura G. Tejeda, Administrative Assistant
Mike Berger Award
Columbia University Journalism School
2950 Broadway
New York, NY 10027
212-854-7696
lt2026@columbia.edu