Y IS FREEDOM OF THE PRESS IMPORTANT TO OUR DEMOCRACY?
Our Founders considered freedom of the press so important to our democracy that they placed the requirement in the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights. Why did they accord it such prominent placement and why does it remain so crucial to preserving our system of government?
ELIGIBILITY: School District of Lee County students in the 11th & 12th grades
TIMETABLE: Entries must be submitted by January 31, 2018. Winners will be announced during Sunshine Week, March 11-17, 2018
GUIDELINES: Contestants may submit entries to freedomofthepresscontest@
Written essays must be no more than 500 words in length. Video essays must be no more than 2 minutes in length. Up to 3 students may participate in creating the video essay.
JUDGING: All entries will be judged on how completely the topic is covered, creativity and uniqueness, accuracy and clarity, and organization and flow of ideas. In addition, for written submissions, judges will look at vocabulary, grammar, spelling and sentence structure. For video submissions, judges will consider technical aptitude, audio/visual quality and editing/continuity.
PRIZES:
First Prize $200 (written) $200 (video)
Second Prize $100 gift card (written) $100 gift card (video)
Winning entries will be published in The News-Press and at news-press.com.
Prizes donated by CareerSource, The News-Press, and anonymous individuals.
SPONSORED BY: LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF LEE COUNTY
THE NEWS-PRESS MEDIA GROUP
FLORIDA SOUTHWESTERN STATE COLLEGE
FOUNDATION FOR LEE COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS
THE SCHOOL DISTRICT OF LEE COUNTY
CAREERSOURCE SOUTHWEST FLORIDA
