SEJC
2006 ON-SITE COMPETITION CHAMPIONSHIPS
Projected Categories and Guidelines
Copy Editing: Students will be provided a story that contains errors of judgment, facts, AP style and grammar. Participants will have one hour to correct all mistakes and to rewrite as needed. Entrants may bring reference books with them; no reference books will be provided. (Limited to first 15 entrants.)
Entertainment Writing: When they register, students in this event should pick up a fact sheet and a CD. Participants will listen to the recording on their own; they will then have one hour to write a review on specified campus computers Friday afternoon. At the competition site, entrants will be allowed to bring in only notes and ancillary material (i.e., no complete stories). Students must bring their own CD players. (Limited to first 15 entrants.)
Feature Photography: When they register, students should pick up a feature photo assignment sheet for a story they will cover on deadline. This category requires that students use a camera with a removable memory stick. (Limited to first 15 entrants.)
Feature Writing: When they register, students in this category should pick up a sheet containing a feature story assignment that they will research prior to the designated competition time. At the competition site, participants will be allowed to bring in only notes and ancillary material (i.e., no complete stories); students will have one hour to compose stories on campus computers. (Limited to first 15 entrants.)
First Amendment Essay: Students will have one hour to write an essay responding to a specific question or situation about the relationship between reporters and government during times of war and conflict. The question or situation will be provided at the time of competition. At the contest site, entrants will be allowed to bring in only notes and ancillary material. (Limited to first 15 entrants.)
Information Graphics: Students will be positioned at campus computers with InDesign, Photoshop and Illustrator software and will have one hour to create an information graphic from data that will be provided. (Limited to first 15 entrants.)
Media Ethics: One- to three-member teams will review an ethical scenario and spend an hour writing an essay on what their response to the situation would be. (Limited to first 15 teams.)
Media History Trivia: Given two-week advance notice of a media history textbook to be used, two- to four-student teams will play a trivia game to test their knowledge of media history. Sodas and snacks provided! (Limited to 15 teams.)
Media Law: Given two-week advance notice of a media law textbook to be used, students will take a one-hour 100-question multiple-choice, true-false test on media law.
News Writing: Students will be positioned at campus computers and will have one hour to write a news story from facts and/or events that will be presented to them at the time of competition. Students may bring reference books with them; no reference books will be provided. (Limited to the first 15 entrants)
Page Design: Students will be positioned at campus computers and will have one hour to lay out a tabloid-sized newspaper page using InDesign CS. Stories and art will be provided for importation onto the page. Cutlines will be provided; however, students must write their own headlines. (Limited to first 15 entrants.)Personal Column: When they register, students in this category should pick up a sheet with potential topics for a personal column, which they will write on campus computers Friday afternoon during a one-hour span. At the contest site, participants will be allowed to bring in only notes and ancillary material (i.e., no complete columns). (Limited to first 15 entrants.)
Public Relations: One- to three-member teams will study a fact sheet of a company/organization and a small budget for a PR campaign. They will then spend one hour writing a short report describing a proposed campaign and how to spend the money. (Limited to first 15 teams.)
Sports Writing: Friday morning students in this category should pick up a stat book containing information on a baseball game and also a team media guide. At a designated site Friday afternoon, the baseball coach will conduct a news conference concerning the game. Participants will then have one hour to write a story on campus computers using information from these sources; at that time students will be allowed to bring in only notes and ancillary material. (Limited to first 11 entrants.)
Television Newscast/Anchoring: Students will be given a budget of news stories from which they will assemble a short segment that could be part of a local TV newscast. This category will showcase contestants' news judgment, broadcast writing skills and proficiency before a camera. Entrants will be taped reading from hard copy. (Limited to first six entrants.)
Faculty and students are urged to check this Web site regularly for changes in the rules and categories. All rules and categories are subject to change based on logistics and other factors.