NATIONAL MAGAZINE AWARDS ANNOUNCE RULE CHANGES; NEWSPAPERS, NEWSLETTERS NOW ELIGIBLE 

Annual awards to honor best work in print and digital media; entries in video and podcasting categories continue to grow

ASME Awards for Photography and Illustration, previously part of the ASME Best Cover Contest, will be presented with the National Magazine Awards for the first time

NEW YORK—(October 7, 2021)—The American Society of Magazine Editors (ASME) is publishing the call for entries for the 2022 National Magazine Awards this week. The most prestigious journalism prizes for magazines and websites, the awards will now welcome entries from independent news organizations, newspapers, newsletters and websites associated with TV/radio stations and networks, and audio and video production companies. Entries will be accepted through January 4, 2022. Finalists and winners will be honored on April 5, 2022, in person for the first time since 2019.

The 57th annual National Magazine Awards will be presented with the ASME Award for Fiction, the ASME NEXT Awards for Journalists Under 30, and new for 2022, the ASME Awards for Photography and Illustration. Other changes this year include a reorganization of the awards to focus on the most essential storytelling categories, reducing the number of categories from 22 to 16. The specific changes are:

  • The Feature Design and Feature Photography categories have been consolidated with Design and Photography.
  • Columns and Commentary has been consolidated with Essays and Criticism.
  • Digital Storytelling, Social Media, and Community Journalism have been discontinued.
  • The Personal Service and Leisure Interests categories have been renamed Service Journalism and Lifestyle Journalism, respectively, reflecting the continuing importance of service and lifestyle journalism in print and its growing popularity online.
  • Social media content can now be entered in General Excellence, Single-Topic Issue, Service Journalism, Lifestyle Journalism, Reporting and Public Interest. 

“After our virtual programming for the 2021 awards, ASME used the time to reset for a new season,” said Sid Holt, executive director, ASME. “The changes we made reflect the evolution of our industry and allow us to prioritize storytelling above all else. Our more than 200 judges—editors, writers, art directors and photo editors—will be hard at work as they review the highest quality content this year.”

Holt noted that the number of digital entries in the National Magazine Awards continues to grow after surpassing print entries for the first time in 2021. Podcasting and Video are the two categories expected to grow the most in 2022. ASME will also continue to present a special award for coverage of race in America, with entries in every category eligible for nomination.

In advance of the 2022 awards, ASME has announced new leadership. Clara Jeffery, editor in chief, Mother Jones, is now President. The other officers are Vice President Janice Min, contributing editor, TIME; Treasurer Alison Overholt, general manager, Oprah Daily; and Secretary Anna Holmes, executive vice president, Higher Ground Productions.

New board members include Susan Goldberg, editor in chief, National Geographic; Radhika Jones, editor in chief, Vanity Fair; Stephanie Mehta, editor in chief, Fast Company; Paul Reyes, editor, Virginia Quarterly Review; Liz Vaccariello, editor in chief, Real Simple; and Geoff Van Dyke, editorial director, 5280. They join existing board members Joe Brown, group editorial director, Hearst Autos; Edward Felsenthal, editor in chief and CEO, TIME; Amanda Kludt, editor in chief, Eater; Julia Turner, deputy managing editor, Los Angeles Times; Charles Whitaker, dean, Medill School of Journalism, Northwestern University; and Jonathan Dorn, vice president and general manager, Outside Inc. 

Established in 1966, the National Magazine Awards for Print and Digital Media are sponsored by the American Society of Magazine Editors in association with the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism and are administered by ASME. Originally limited to print magazines, the awards now recognize magazine-quality journalism published in any medium. Winners receive an “Ellie,” modeled on the symbol of the awards, Alexander Calder’s stabile “Elephant Walking.”

Visit asme.media for more information or nationalmagazineawards.org to submit an entry. 

* * *

About ASME

The American Society of Magazine Editors is the principal organization for the editorial leaders of magazines and websites published in the United States. Founded in 1963, ASME strives to safeguard the First Amendment, support the development of journalism and defend the editorial integrity of print and digital publications. ASME sponsors the National Magazine Awards for Print and Digital Media in association with the Columbia Journalism School, conducts training programs for reporters and editors and publishes the ASME Guidelines for Editors and Publishers. 

About Columbia Journalism School

For over a century, the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism has been preparing journalists with instruction and training that stresses academic rigor, ethics, journalistic inquiry and professional practice. Founded with a gift from Joseph Pulitzer, the school opened its doors in 1912 and offers master of science, master of arts and doctor of philosophy degrees. Learn more at journalism.columbia.edu. 

Contacts:

Sid Holt
[email protected]
212-872-3723 

Kaitlyn Kurosky
[email protected]