The 2024 Missouri Press Foundation Better Newspaper Contest template is now open and members can begin submitting entries. If you haven’t yet, gather your entries for this year’s contest now.
All the information about the contest — rules, categories, entry instructions — is online at mopress.com/better-newspaper/.
Entries to the Missouri Press Foundation’s Newspaper Contest will be submitted using the Advanced Contest Entry System (ACES) platform: https://www.newspapercontest.com/Contests/MissouriPressAssociationBNC.aspx.
Due to changes in the way the contest template is operated, each PUBLICATION will need a unique email address for uploading contest entries.
While entries will be accepted through Friday, April 5, a tiered fee structure has been put in place with reduced costs for newspapers submitting entries earlier in the contest cycle.
The 2024 BNC entry fee structure is as follows:
Entries uploaded before March 1: $6 per entry;
Entries uploaded before April 1: $7 per entry; and
Entries uploaded April 1-5: $10 per entry.
The template will close automatically at 11 p.m. Friday, April 5, and no entries will be accepted after it closes.
All categories for Missouri’s 2024 Better Newspaper Contest require digital entries. Please familiarize yourself with the template and ask questions about how to use it as soon as possible.
You are also encouraged to consider file-sharing websites, i.e., Dropbox, Google Drive, as a method for sharing your larger entries, such as General Excellence and page design entries. There are many free options available that will also provide benefits to your newspaper outside of entering the BNC.
If you need help entering any category, contact Matthew Barba (mbarba@mopress.com) or Kristie Fortier (kfortier@mopress.com) for assistance.
We ask members not to wait until the deadline to enter your entries in the template.
DEADLINE: There is no need to wait until the deadline to upload your entries! The contest template will close at 11 p.m. Friday, April 5, and will not accept entries after that — no exceptions. You may begin uploading your entries now.
ALERT: Please try to keep file sizes under 5mb to aid judges in accessing entry content. For larger files such as Special Sections, options include Dropbox, Google Drive, or any service that lets you “share” files via URL. Please make sure the file is public or a password is provided and that it can be printed. If a file cannot be easily accessed, it could be skipped over for judging.
THREE TIPS TO MAKE UPLOADING EASY:
- Entries that consist of more than one piece of content should be combined into one file. This will make uploading and judging much easier. Categories include Best Columnist, Best Front Page, etc., where an entry is more than one piece. Do the same for stories that jump to another page.
- Entries should have 1-3-word titles that tell the judge precisely what material on the page is to be judged. You can also use Adobe Acrobat’s “highlighter” function to indicate content to be judged.
- Put all your entries into a “Contest Entries” folder on your desktop.
Please read the instructions and category listings carefully!
