The first session of Palestine Media Creativity Award named after Naji Al-Ali will offer prizes – $15,000 (1st place), $10,000 (2nd place), $5,000 (3rd place) – for winners who will be announced in the spring of 2018.
Palestinian cartoonist Naji Al-Ali was murdered on 22 July, 1987 in London.
The International Palestinian Conference for Media and Communications made this announcement during Palestine Media Creativity Award’s first session and launch in Beirut. The occasion which was attended by a large number of Palestinian and Lebanese journalists, coincided with Al-Ali’s death 30 years ago.
The award hopes to highlight all unconventional depictions of the Palestinian cause. It was established to discover talents in Palestine media coverage.
Speaking at the press conference, Hisham Qasem (Secretary-General of the forum) presented the Palestine Media Creativity Award as “the first of its kind in the Arab world, as well as internationally.”
“[The goal is to] motivate media creativity serving Palestine and to recognize the achievements of creative journalists in serving this just and honorable cause,” Qasem said.
“It also aims to encourage the youth to make Palestine the focus of their creative endeavors and to raise the standards of innovation and originality in presenting the Palestinian narrative.”
He later announced the selected panel judges/members for the award’s first session.
The list includes Egyptian documentary filmmaker and media expert, Assaad Taha, Iraqi television presenter and media expert Jasim Al-Azzawi, Moroccan academic and media intellectual, Dr Abdullah Abu Awad, Palestinian digital media expert Imad Musa, and filmmaker and media consultant, Rawan Damen.
Submissions for the award’s first session will be accepted from individuals and groups, working alone through media, research, or academic institutes, or through local or international civil society organisations between 1 August 2017 and the end of this year. You can send in your submissions here.
Part of the rules are as follows:
- The submitted work must be to a professional standard (accurate information, objective, and credible without exaggeration) and within a proper and sound linguistic framework.
- It must have elements of creativity, innovation, and originality in one or more of the following aspects:
- Content (Including the idea, angle, delivery, method and results of field or research efforts and the methodologies/techniques used, choices, and priorities)
- Method of presentation (Including style, method, construction, plot, and details while maintaining clarity)
- Additional meanings (while maintaining clarity and focus)
- It must have exceptional depth and/or clear ability to influence the target audience
