The African FOSS Reporter Award

The African FOSS Reporter Award Recognizing excellence in IT Journalism and FOSS Reporting in Africa

 

Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) has the potential to curtail some obstacles towards adoption and effective use of ICTs in Africa and to contribute to bridge the digital divide. However the potential contribution of philosophy, economy and software development model of FOSS to the issues facing Africa   are often overlooked or under­represented by the media. We are searching for enthusiastic writers/journalists who want to demonstrate their journalistic abilities by examining these issues.

FOSSFA has issued the African FOSS Reporter Award Competition 2010. The award aims to highlight the impact of FOSS on the development of Africa. It recognizes outstanding reporting for a general audience and honors individuals (rather than institutions and publishers) for their coverage of FOSS.The competition is run in partnership with  Deutsche Welle  and supported by  OSIWA  as part of an initiative to raise public awareness of FOSS.

PARTICIPANTS

The award is open to Africans living in Africa, authors of articles or broadcasts   that have been published or aired in the last two years.

CONDITIONS

Winning entries are articles or broadcasts that are valuable to an African audience, show clarity in their communication and are significant in disclosing, explaining, interpreting and reporting the impact of FOSS on the development of Africa and recognizing newsworthiness.

CONFERMENT OF AWARD

The winner  and 2 runners­up will be announced and presented with their awards during a  special awards ceremony at  Idlelo, the 4th African Conference on FOSS and the Digital Commons that will take place next May 17th­21st in Accra, Ghana.

Each runner­up will receive a certificate and a full Idlelo Pass.

The winner will receive a certificate, an Idlelo Pass, and a cash prize.

ENTRY DEADLINE

Deadline for receipt of the awards entries is Sunday May 2nd 2010.

SUBMISSION

Entries should be sent by email to mediajury@fossfa.net with a copy to fossway@fossfa.net or by mail to FOSSFA c/o The Advanced Information Technology Institute (AITI) of the Ghana­India Kofi Annan Center of Excellence in ICT (KACE) Second Avenue, Opposite Council of State, Private Mail Bag,          State House, Accra, Ghana. Contact: Ms Silvia Aimasso ­   Tel. +233 (0)54 138 1910.

Entry must include a completed entry form.

JUDGING CRITERIA


Subject Matter
Judges will score the subject matter out of 10; based on originality; importance; general interest and usefulness.


Insight
Judges will score the article for insight out of 10, based on accuracy; the value of the insights; the quality and relevance of the sources/opinions.


Writing Quality
Judges will score the articles for their writing quality out of 10, based on grammar; article flow; flair; readability and entertainment value.

Adaptation to the medium
Judges will score the articles for their writing quality out of 10, based on the capacity of the author to adapt the message to the medium he/she has chosen to participate in the competition.

THE JURY

The Jury will be made up of:

  • The FOSSWAY Project Coordinator
  • One member from FOSSFA Secretariat
  • One FOSSFA executive
  • The Open Society Initiative for West Africa
  • The Deutsche Welle
  • One media expert

For more information please contact mediajury@fossfa.net, and fossway@fossfa.net
 

Please download the application from HERE

Consult the FAQ before applying