Guidelines
The 2025 contest opened March 1, 2025.
- Open to journalists working in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.
- All entries must have been published, broadcast or placed online in 2024
SPJ pro members by April 14: $40 per category
not an SPJ member by April 14: $60 per category
students by April 14: $20 per category
Online payment is strongly preferred. But to pay by check, send payment to…
Green Eyeshade Awards
c/o Tim Dodson
145 Bermuda Lakes Drive
Meridianville, AL 35759
No fees will be refunded, and all entries become the property of Green Eyeshade Awards and/or SPJ.
- All entries must be submitted online.
- You can enter multiple times per category. As long as you pay the entry fees, we don’t cap the number.
- Cover letters are optional except where noted. If you decide you need one, keep it to a single page. A cover letter might include information about impact or community reaction. Don’t try to “sell” the story to the judges. Trust us, that never works.
- All entries must be accompanied by payment.
- Corrections or serious challenges to an entry must be included with the entry. If judges or Green Eyeshade administrators learn a correction wasn’t included, the entry will be disqualified – and your money won’t be returned.
- Read everything carefully. Some categories have other specific entry requirements.
- We’re flexible. If you have questions about the rules, email us. But know that we’ll try to interpret those rules as loosely as possible – this is about recognizing good work, not getting nit-picky. Just ask and we’ll try our best to accommodate.