THE largest cash prize to be offered to local journalists for outstanding work is to be presented this year by the Jamaica Broilers Group in its Fair Play Awards of Excellence. The deadline for submission of works published or broadcast across all media platforms for judging in the competition is today.

The winner and two runners-up in the 2013/2014 staging of the awards programme will receive a total of $1 million in cash, in addition to Jamaica Broilers Group Fair Play Awards of Excellence trophies.

Last year the overall winner across all media categories in the renewed competition was TVJ’s All Angles: The Bleaching Phenomenon, with Dionne Jackson-Miller, Andre Jebbison, Archibald Gordon, Ivan Shaw, Glenford Campbell, Walford Jebbison, and Shakir Brown. The judges were impressed with the entry, describing it as: “An excellent journalistic treatment of a troubling situation” “[a] stand-out entry”, “an honest viewpoint”, and “insightful”.

The team walked away with $300,000.00 in cash and the Fair Play Award of Excellence Trophy.

However, this year the winner will get $500,000; first runner-up $300,000, and the second runner-up will receive $200,000.

“The Jamaica Broilers Group is pleased to be able to increase the cash prizes to journalists who continue to support this programme which is in its 14th year. We applaud members of the profession who continue to work hard to keep our nation informed and to present stories that are thorough, balanced, accurate, and have resulted in positive national impact,” said Christopher Levy, the group’s president and CEO.

The entries will be judged by an esteemed five-member panel comprising Kathy Barrett, broadcast journalist and media consultant; Wyvolyn Gager, media trainer and consultant; Claude Robinson, associate training fellow, Mona School of Business at the University of the West Indies (UWI); and Anthony ‘T Robb’ Robinson, TV producer and newspaper columnist. The judging panel will be led by Professor Hopeton Dunn, professor of communications policy and digital media UWI, Mona.

Presentations will be made to the winner and two runners-up at an awards ceremony set for September 16 at the Terra Nova All-Suites Hotel in Kingston.