AIJC African Investigative Journalist of the Year Award 2024 ($5,000 prize)

All African journalists are invited to submit entries for the 2024 WCJ/AIJC African Investigative Journalist of the Year Award. The Award, supported by Absa, recognises outstanding examples of investigative reporting from Africa that reveal untold stories, hold the powerful to account, question those in public life and serve the public interest.

The Award recognises the best examplar of investigative reporting from and about Africa over the year ending end-June. The Award can be made to a journalist or team of journalists working in any medium. It can be for a single story or a series of stories published or broadcast in Africa in the previous year.

Awards of African Investigative Journalist

• The prize is US$5,000. Major travel costs like flights, accommodation and transport will be covered for the finalists.

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Eligibility for African Investigative Journalist

• Open to all African journalists or teams of journalists working in any media for stories from and about Africa published or broadcast in African media between 1 June 2023 to 1 July 2024.
• No individual journalist or organization can be part of more than two entries. Each entry may consist of no more than five stories.

Selection Criteria

Winners will be chosen by a panel of judges who have discretion to set and use criteria they consider to be appropriate and reasonable. They will take into account:

• The originality of the story and the revelations it contains.
• The investigative work that went into it, particularly inventiveness and persistence or courage.
• The impact of the story, particularly in relation to public service.

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Application

Entries must include:

• An electronic copy of the entry material as published/broadcast. If the original is reduced in size it must be accompanied by a readable Word/PDF version.
• A 100-word biography and high-res photo of each entrant.
• A high-res copy of the publication/broadcaster’s
• A short motivation for the entry (maximum 500 words), including any background the judges should be aware of, an indication of the impact of the story and details of any significant challenge to the accuracy or fairness of the entry such as published letters, corrections, retractions, formal complaints or court cases. This motivation is critical and judges should be informed of the finer detail that went into the investigation, for example, accessing hard-to-come-by documents or innovative problem-solving. The judges want to know the smart and hard work that went into the story, the risks taken, its originality, context and impact.
• Broadcast entries must include a transcript and a short video clip of the story for publicity

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