Your primer on the 2010 APSE contest Dec. 16, 2009
Judging already took place by APSE for 2010 even though it’s still 2009.
With the addition of best newspaper Web site as a new contest category, judges were busy this month looking at the 100 entries submitted.
That’s a tremendous number of entries when you consider the short period to enter and the newness of the category. And it was APSE’s first green contest; no mailings, just e-mail.
The breakdown for entries: 57 for newspapers with more than 1 million unique monthly visitors and 43 for newspapers with fewer than 1 million.
Ron Fritz of the Baltimore Sun was the chair for the under 1 million group and is being assisted by Melissa Geisler of Yahoo Sports, Jack McCluskey of ESPN.com and Thomas Neuman of ESPN.com.
Gerry Ahern of Yahoo Sports was the chair for the over 1 million group and is being assisted by Todd Adams of the Fayetteville Observer, Paul Grant of ESPN.com and Al Toby of Yahoo Sports.
Judges decided the top 10 in each division along with 10 for honorable mention. APSE will announce the under 1 million winners on Christmas Day and the top selections for more than 1 million on Dec. 26.
It was a great test to see how judging works in different locations and how we will be able to add other Web site categories for future judging. We should be able to add multi-media in some form as part of the next contest.
As for the writing and section portion of the contest, all that is left is a few items. We have already selected two mandatory dates for sections. Weekday is Tuesday, Feb. 24. Sunday is April 5.
Two more dates need to be selected. APSE will make that announcement on Dec. 31. Contest entries must be postmarked by midnight Tuesday, Feb. 9.
Judging takes place March 6-10 in Kissimmee, Fla. That’s later than usual because of the Olympics in February.
Everything up to that point has been the easy part. To make judging successful, I need your help to join me in Kissimmee, Fla.
I haven’t made the big push, but I have commitments from 28 judges and will obviously need more. Seventy was the magic number in Las Vegas, but I’ll look to exceed that in case of cancellations.
Simply send me an e-mail if you plan to be a judge or reserve your spot on APSE’s group page on Facebook.
If you have been a judge before, you know there will be a lot of work to do. Walt Disney Wide World of Sports will once again host a spring training game for APSE judges. We are scheduled for a reception on March 9 with a game to follow between the Braves and Phillies.
And I’ve set aside an hour on the second night for a session to improve your skills with social media.
Here’s what you need to know about judging.
Dates: March 6-10.
Location: Radisson World Gate, Kissimmee, Fla. This is the same hotel used for judging in 2008.
Rates: $99.
Booking a room: Making the reservation at Radisson World Gate is easy. It can be done two ways:
Go to www.worldgateresort.com and use the code APSE.
Call toll free at 866-705-7676. Remember to ask for the group rate for APSE.
If you are looking to save on expenses, one way is to share a room. I’ve done it the past two years and it has worked out fine. Let me know if you need a roommate.
Here are some important points to know about the contest:
DUES: If two separate sports sections have the same sports editor, but different content, then dues should be paid by each paper to enter this year’s contest. If the content is the same, then they should pay just once. Any other sections that share the same sports editor but put out different sections under different names (with similar, but not exact, copy) should each pay separate dues.
DEADLINE: Entries must be postmarked by midnight Tuesday, Feb. 9.
ONLINE MEMBERS: For the first time, online members (ESPN, Yahoo, Sporting News, Rivals) will compete in over 250,000-circulation category for writing entries.
PRINTOUTS: We will accept printouts instead of cutouts from the newspapers; this is a change from all previous contests.
BREAKING NEWS: Breaking news can still be in the next day’s paper. But in order to certify that a newspaper had the story first, we will accept an original time-stamped copy of the web version IN ADDITION to the story that appears the next day, but not in lieu of it.
MISSION STATEMENT: If a sports editor so chooses, he or she may add a brief note on the mission of the sports section. This may help offer insight to the judges so that they may better understand the sections they are reviewing.
The complete rules are available here.
With the addition of best newspaper Web site as a new contest category, judges were busy this month looking at the 100 entries submitted.
That’s a tremendous number of entries when you consider the short period to enter and the newness of the category. And it was APSE’s first green contest; no mailings, just e-mail.
The breakdown for entries: 57 for newspapers with more than 1 million unique monthly visitors and 43 for newspapers with fewer than 1 million.
Ron Fritz of the Baltimore Sun was the chair for the under 1 million group and is being assisted by Melissa Geisler of Yahoo Sports, Jack McCluskey of ESPN.com and Thomas Neuman of ESPN.com.
Gerry Ahern of Yahoo Sports was the chair for the over 1 million group and is being assisted by Todd Adams of the Fayetteville Observer, Paul Grant of ESPN.com and Al Toby of Yahoo Sports.
Judges decided the top 10 in each division along with 10 for honorable mention. APSE will announce the under 1 million winners on Christmas Day and the top selections for more than 1 million on Dec. 26.
It was a great test to see how judging works in different locations and how we will be able to add other Web site categories for future judging. We should be able to add multi-media in some form as part of the next contest.
As for the writing and section portion of the contest, all that is left is a few items. We have already selected two mandatory dates for sections. Weekday is Tuesday, Feb. 24. Sunday is April 5.
Two more dates need to be selected. APSE will make that announcement on Dec. 31. Contest entries must be postmarked by midnight Tuesday, Feb. 9.
Judging takes place March 6-10 in Kissimmee, Fla. That’s later than usual because of the Olympics in February.
Everything up to that point has been the easy part. To make judging successful, I need your help to join me in Kissimmee, Fla.
I haven’t made the big push, but I have commitments from 28 judges and will obviously need more. Seventy was the magic number in Las Vegas, but I’ll look to exceed that in case of cancellations.
Simply send me an e-mail if you plan to be a judge or reserve your spot on APSE’s group page on Facebook.
If you have been a judge before, you know there will be a lot of work to do. Walt Disney Wide World of Sports will once again host a spring training game for APSE judges. We are scheduled for a reception on March 9 with a game to follow between the Braves and Phillies.
And I’ve set aside an hour on the second night for a session to improve your skills with social media.
Here’s what you need to know about judging.
Dates: March 6-10.
Location: Radisson World Gate, Kissimmee, Fla. This is the same hotel used for judging in 2008.
Rates: $99.
Booking a room: Making the reservation at Radisson World Gate is easy. It can be done two ways:
Go to www.worldgateresort.com and use the code APSE.
Call toll free at 866-705-7676. Remember to ask for the group rate for APSE.
If you are looking to save on expenses, one way is to share a room. I’ve done it the past two years and it has worked out fine. Let me know if you need a roommate.
Here are some important points to know about the contest:
DUES: If two separate sports sections have the same sports editor, but different content, then dues should be paid by each paper to enter this year’s contest. If the content is the same, then they should pay just once. Any other sections that share the same sports editor but put out different sections under different names (with similar, but not exact, copy) should each pay separate dues.
DEADLINE: Entries must be postmarked by midnight Tuesday, Feb. 9.
ONLINE MEMBERS: For the first time, online members (ESPN, Yahoo, Sporting News, Rivals) will compete in over 250,000-circulation category for writing entries.
PRINTOUTS: We will accept printouts instead of cutouts from the newspapers; this is a change from all previous contests.
BREAKING NEWS: Breaking news can still be in the next day’s paper. But in order to certify that a newspaper had the story first, we will accept an original time-stamped copy of the web version IN ADDITION to the story that appears the next day, but not in lieu of it.
MISSION STATEMENT: If a sports editor so chooses, he or she may add a brief note on the mission of the sports section. This may help offer insight to the judges so that they may better understand the sections they are reviewing.
The complete rules are available here.
