Ambar SyedThe Canadian Forces Newspapers Youth Reporter Competition is giving young people from military families the unique chance to tell their story in print, online, or on social media with the help of Canadian Forces Newspapers journalists, editors, and photographers.
Families members of Regular Force members, Reserve Force members, veterans, and fallen are encouraged to submit their entries.
Entrants must be between 13 – 18 years of age. Parental permission must be obtained prior to entering the competition.
“The Canadian Forces Managers will choose the most unique and powerful stories – which will be published with the winning entrants. Our readers will then have an opportunity to vote for their favourite story, and that reporter will win a grand prize package and a scholarship,” reads the Canadian Forces Morale and Welfare Services (CFMWS) website.
“Each entry will need to answer the following question: Why do you want to share your story, and what would it mean to you to share your story. That’s to give us a bit of background about why you want to tell this story, what it means to you – why it is relevant to you and your life.”
The competition is asking for news stories that are relevant to the writer’s life, or their family and friends, or something that affects the wider world, where their own experiences offer a unique perspective.
The entry must be original and written about a personal experience that has not been previously widely reported. It should also reflect the life of the contributor and/or people they know.
Each entry needs to state why the writer reporting the story or issue brings a unique perspective to it, as well as how they would widen their report to look at the issues around the subject matter chosen.
Stories will be judged on editorial merit, including the strength of the story itself, originality of the subject matter, as well as its personal relevance to the writer.
Judges will be looking for a range of diverse stories from across the military community.
The winner will receive a grand prize package with a scholarship.
The deadline for submissions is December 31st, 2019, and the five finalists will be announced on February 3rd, 2020.
Articles will be published on April 1st, 2020, for readership voting, with the winner being announced on May 6th, 2020. Submissions can be entered here.
