NEW YORK, N.Y. (Oct. 19, 2016) — Print and online magazines are now eligible for Pulitzer Prizes in all journalism categories, the Pulitzer Prize Board announced today. Entries of work done in 2016 will be accepted beginning in December for the 2017 prizes. Pulitzer entry guidelines have been adjusted to reflect the expanded eligibility at http://www.pulitzer.org/page/2017-journalism-submission-guidelines-requirements-and-faqs.
The board made its decision last week after two years of experimentation. Two journalism categories were open to magazines in 2015, five this year. New Yorker staff writers had three finalists during that time, and two of them won Pulitzer Prizes this year.
“After the successful experiment and a close review of Joseph Pulitzer’s intentions for the prizes, we decided that the time had come to open all categories to magazines,” said Joyce Dehli, co-chair of the Pulitzer board. “The broad expansion of digital journalism has led to a growing overlap in the work and roles of newspapers, digital-only news sites, and magazines.”
For example, many magazines now publish news and commentary daily on the web, as do newspapers and other news sites. “Distinctions among them have blurred,” said Dehli, who is an Edmond J. Safra fellow-in-residence at Harvard University.
Joseph Pulitzer’s will established the prizes “for the progress and elevation of journalism” and anticipated the need for changes over time, saying they should be “conducive to the public good or rendered advisable by public necessities, or by reason of change of time.”
In broadening the competition, the board stressed that all entered material should come from regularly published United States newspapers, magazines, and news websites that “adhere to the highest journalistic principles.” Broadcast organizations and their websites remain ineligible for the prizes.
Consistent with its historical focus on text-based journalism, the Pulitzer Prize Board continues to place emphasis on the enduring value of words and of serious reporting, while also recognizing the opportunity provided by the internet for integration of text with audio and visual elements, as well as data analysis, to strengthen reporting and storytelling.
“We have seen ample evidence that our juries and board can fairly judge magazine entries alongside the best work of newspapers and news sites,” said Mike Pride, administrator of the prizes.
The board unanimously adopted the new policy after study by a board committee. It also approved a revised set of guidelines to steer eligible organizations and individuals through the entry process. Among other things, the guidelines spell out the kind of work the board is seeking to reward and what the board means by “the highest journalistic principles.”
Finally, the board amended the entry process by eliminating the requirement for entry letters. In their place, entrants will be asked questions tailored to each category about the entered work. This change is designed to provide the board with the same crucial information about how each entry was produced and why the entrant believes it is worthy of the prize.
The new entry guidelines are posted at Pulitzer.org now. The Q&A entry process will be instituted when the journalism entry site opens in December for work published during 2016.
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The Pulitzer Prizes, which are administered at Columbia University, were established by Joseph Pulitzer, a Hungarian-American journalist and newspaper publisher, who left money to Columbia University upon his death in 1911. A portion of his bequest was used to found the School of Journalism in 1912 and establish the Pulitzer Prizes, which were first awarded in 1917.
The 19-member board is composed mainly of leading journalists or news executives from media outlets across the U.S., as well as five academics or persons in the arts. The dean of Columbia's journalism school and the administrator of the prizes are nonvoting members. The chair rotates annually to the most senior member or members. The board is self-perpetuating in the election of members. Voting members may serve three terms of three years for a total of nine years.