Category Archives: Awards

Griot Drum Scholarship deadline extended to Oct. 10

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Do you know a journalism student of color with a tie to the Tampa Bay area?

Might they want some serious $$ for school this year?

They now have until October 10 to do something about it.
…
The Tampa Bay Association of Black Journalists have extended our Griot Drum Scholarship deadline to Oct. 10. We are giving away $5,000 in scholarships, including one award for graduate students.

Because of growing demand, TBABJ will give away its first scholarship to a graduate journalism student this year for $1,000. In addition, two undergraduate students will each receive a $1,000 scholarship and one undergraduate student will receive a $2,000 scholarship.

Our goal: to help young journalists of color join the ranks of the working press. Please encourage all high school seniors, undergraduate and graduate students of color (African American, Hispanic, Asian, etc.) to apply for this contest by OCT. 10, 2010.

Applications must be postmarked by this date to be considered. Scholarship winners will be announced this year during TBABJ’s Griot Drum Awards ceremony, taking place in Tampa Nov. 18, at the Dr. Blaise F. Alfano Conference & Banquet Center,
11606 McKinley Drive.

To learn more about Griot Drum, visit www.tbabj.com. Students currently enrolled in college or graduating high school seniors are encouraged to apply. Previous grand prize winners are NOT eligible.

Applicants MUST have a connection to the Tampa Bay area, which includes Tampa, St. Petersburg and Sarasota, among other communities in the region. We expect our winners to attend a reception before the Griot Drum ceremony and stay for the banquet.

Questions? Contact Kevin Graham, TBABJ’s Scholarship Coordinator, at 813-857-4096 or contactkevingraham@gmail.com.

Tickets now on sale for the 2010 Griot Drum Awards & Scholarship Banquet!

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Tickets are now on sale for the Griot Drum Awards & Scholarship Banquet, the signature event of the nationally-recognized Tampa Bay Association of Black Journalists!

Held each November, it is the only locally-produced journalism awards program that honors coverage of people of color.

The 2010 installment of Griot Drum will be held Nov. 18 at the Dr. Blaise F. Alfano Conference & Banquet Center, 11606 McKinley Drive, Tampa.

The evening begins at 6 p.m. with a reception featuring local saxophonist Jonathan Milton. ESPN’s Jemele Hill, one of the few women of color serving as a national sports columnist and TV personality, will headline the 7 p.m. dinner and awards presentation. Since joining ESPN in November 2006, Hill has made regular appearances on SportsCenter, ESPN First Take, Jim Rome is Burning, and Outside the Lines.

More than 200 guests are expected to attend this year’s ceremony, which will include performances by the Gulfcoast Academy of Performing Arts (formerly the Soulful Arts Dance Academy) and Tampa musical prodigy Caleb E. Sanders. Area high school seniors and college students will be given financial support to pursue their education in the field of journalism.

Proceeds from ticket sales will help TBABJ fund those scholarships. Tickets are $20 for TBABJ members, $25 for non-members and $200 for a table of ten.

Please complete the order form and return with the total amount to the address listed below.

See you Nov. 18!

Best,

Rodney Thrash
Staff writer, St. Petersburg Times
Co-chair, 2010 TBABJ Griot Drum Awards
Office: 727.445.4167
Cell: 813.610.1268
E-mail: rthrash@sptimes.com

TICKET ORDER FORM

Name _________________________________

Number of tickets _________________

Address _________________________________

Total enclosed _________________

Telephone _________________

E-mail _________________________________

Return to:
Tampa Bay Association of Black Journalists
c/o Rodney Thrash
710 Court Street
Clearwater, Florida 33756

Griot Drum Awards deadline extended to Sept. 3!

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Great news, friends and members of the Tampa Bay Association of Black Journalists (TBABJ)!

You now have four (4) more weeks to enter your work in the only locally-produced journalism awards program, the 2010 Griot Drum Awards and Scholarship Banquet.

The NEW postmark deadline is FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2010.

Have a story, photograph or online package that highlights the experience of people of color? What are you waiting for? Send it in to the address below no later than FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2010.

Print, broadcast and online media professionals will receive awards in 37 different categories from the nationally-recognized TBABJ. Only work published, broadcast or uploaded between Jan. 1, 2009 and Dec. 31, 2009 will be considered.

Copies of the entry form, the category descriptions and an FAQ are available here: http://tbabj.com/index.php?categories=Awards.

Griot Drum promises to be an amazing event. About 250 guests are expected to attend this year’s ceremony, which will be held Nov. 18 at the Dr. Blaise F. Alfano Conference & Banquet Center, 11606 McKinley Drive, Tampa. Four area high school seniors and college students will be given financial support to pursue their education in the field of journalism. There will be inspiring entertainment, a reception, dinner and more.

If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact Rodney Thrash, Griot Drum Awards Co-Chair.

TBABJ looks forward to receiving your work.

Rodney Thrash
Staff writer
St. Petersburg Times Clearwater Bureau
710 Court Street
Clearwater, Florida 33756
Office: 727.445.4167 or 1.800.333.7505, x4167
Fax: 727.445.4119
Cell: 813.610.1268

Griot Drum Awards FAQ

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GET OUT THOSE MEDIA AWARD SUBMISSIONS!

The Tampa Bay Association of Black Journalists (TBABJ) is accepting entries for the 2010 Griot Drum Awards, which honors the best coverage of people of color.

Winners will be announced in November at the 2010 Griot Drum Awards ceremony.

Who is eligible?
Any individual or news organization in Hillsborough, Pinellas, Citrus, Hernando, Manatee, Pasco, Polk or Sarasota counties can enter materials published, broadcast or presented between Jan. 1, 2009 and Dec. 31, 2009. The contest is open to journalists of all ethnicities. Entrants do not have to belong to TBABJ.

How can I enter my work?
All entries must be postmarked by August 2, 2010. Any entry postmarked after that date will be disqualified. Entries should be mailed to: Tampa Bay Association of Black Journalists c/o Rodney Thrash, Griot Drum Awards Co-chair 710 Court Street, Clearwater, Fla., 33756 Faxed or e-mailed entries will not be accepted. See following post for information on entry categories.

Is there a fee?
The cost per entry is $25 for non-TBABJ members and $10 for members. Checks or money orders should be made out to the Tampa Bay Association of Black Journalists and should be attached to each entry form. Checks covering more than one entry from an organization should be made out for the total amount, and a separate note should be attached detailing the exact entries covered by the fee. Cash will not be accepted.

What can I submit?
Entries must focus on subjects concerning people or communities of color and have been broadcast, presented or published within the Tampa Bay area. Individuals and news organizations may submit as many entries as desired. However, only one category is allowed per entry. Entering the same work in more than one category is permitted, for a fee. For example, the cost to enter an entry in two categories is $50 for non-members/$20 for members; three, $75/$30; and so on. Entries will not be returned.

How can I submit my work?
Newspaper. Entries with loose clippings, poster boards or ringed binders will be disqualified. Entries are best delivered on 8.5” x 11” sheets, either photocopied into this form (preferred) or cut up and taped down. Entries also may be mounted on pressboards. If submission is a series, it must be limited to no more than seven stories. PLEASE be sure to use the correct category number (See attached rules and categories).

Television. Entries can be submitted on VHS TAPES or standard DVDs only. A series should be entered on one tape and be limited to no more than five stories. Do not use color bars. A five-second slate is permitted. PLEASE be sure to use the correct category number.

Radio. Entries must be on a cassette tape or CD. PLEASE be sure to use the correct category number.

New Media. Entries must be submitted on CD, DVD, flash drive or by providing Internet links, with no more than one entry per storage unit. PLEASE be sure to use the correct category number.

Photo/Graphics. Entries may include original copies of work, in color. PLEASE be sure to use the correct category number. Incomplete entries will be disqualified. Judging and Winners Entries will be judged by National Association of Black Journalists chapters in other parts of the country, so the contest is open to chapter members and officers of TBABJ, except those serving on the awards committee. Broadcast entries will be judged based on content, production value and impact.

Print entries will be judged on content, readability and impact.
The top three entries in each category selected by judges will be recognized at the awards ceremony in November. The top winner will receive a plaque. Awards will be presented to individuals, groups or organizations.

Judges may elect to choose less than three entries in a category or none at all. More Questions? Call 813.610.1268, or e-mail me at rthrash@sptimes.com.

Best, Rodney Thrash
Co-chair, 2010 Griot Drum Awards
Staff writer, St. Petersburg Times