Beginning with 1st Quarter 2009 the traditional regional TVQCC will cease to function. It will be replaced by the contest described below, with three additional pools of competition: the International Pool, the Online Video Journalist Pool and the Solo Video Journalist Pool. Even though a photojournalist may qualify for multiple TVQCC pools, each entrant may only compete in one pool over the course of the year.
At the end of 2009 contest we will have several Photographers of the Year and Stations of the Year AND an International Photographer of the Year, an Online Video Journalist of the Year and a Solo Video Journalist of the Year.
Qualifying criteria for the 2009 contest are found at the end of this document.
This framework of the NPPA Television Quarterly Clip Contest is flexible, based on physical geography, station merit and a photojournalist’s individual merit. It’s designed to promote more equal competition than we’ve had in the past. The category of Deadline News has been added to better reflect what general TV news photographers face daily. Low and unequal participation in many regions have forced us to do away with the traditional format altogether.
The NPPA Television Quarterly Clip Contest is a vital function of the NPPA and provides an important service to its membership and to those who subscribe to NPPA principles. The contest stands to recognize outstanding work performed by television photojournalists on a quarterly basis. The TVQCC also serves to promote, encourage, and teach the highest levels of photojournalism and ethics.
Quarters are defined as follows: 1st: Jan 1-Mar 31; 2nd: Apr 1-Jun 30; 3rd: Jul 1-Sep 30; 4th: Oct 1-Dec 31. Entries must be received by the pool chair on the 10th of the month following the end of the quarter. Late entries will not be accepted.
The TVQCC is open to NPPA members in good standing. In order to be eligible to enter any particular quarter, membership payment must be current on or before the 10th of the month following the end of that quarter. For example, to submit a first quarter entry the entrant must become a member by April 10th; to submit a second quarter entry the entrant must become a member by July 10th; etc. Timely dues payment is each member's responsibility. With membership and participation comes the expectation to serve as a judge.
A photojournalist may enter two clips each quarter. An entry must have aired for the first time during the contest quarter. There is no penalty to the entrant if file video is used although file cannot exceed more than 25% of the total story run time.
When entering the TVQCC you must:
For the 2009 contest, a photojournalist will be allowed to enter three clips per quarter if one of those clips is submitted in the Deadline News category.
File video is defined as video that previously aired in a newscast, video that originated from a network feed, and stock video that was shot previously that may or may not have already aired. File video also includes surveillance video, amateur video and VNRs. File video does NOT include original video created by the entering photojournalist’s colleagues. One exception to this rule exists with helicopter aerial video for the Deadline News and Spot News categories only. Any questions regarding the use of file video should be directed to the pool or national chair.
There are five categories. A photojournalist may enter two clips each quarter. The clips may be entered in the same category or in different categories. The same clip may not be entered in more than one category. Any clip may be entered in any category provided it meets the guidelines set forth below.
For the 2009 contest, a photojournalist will be allowed to enter three clips per quarter if one of those clips is submitted in the Deadline News category.
In all categories a stand alone package or a package accompanied by a live shot may be submitted. (Additional submission options exist for Deadline News. See the category description for details.) The entering photojournalist must have shot at least 90% of the taped portion and 100% of the live portion (if included). Any clip that includes a live element must have the air-check version submitted. Re-editing is prohibited in every category. The pool chair or the judges will determine the qualifications of each entry and may disqualify an entry as they see fit.
A story focused on an unscheduled and/or unfolding news event for which there was no opportunity for planning. The story must have been shot, edited, and broadcast within 24 hours. If a version was edited for another broadcast it must contain new elements not used in the original story. Original helicopter aerial video may be treated as file in this category.
An issue-oriented story or a story of an event for which there was advanced notice and/or opportunity for planning. The story must have been shot, edited, and broadcast within 24 hours. If a version was edited for another broadcast it must contain new elements not used in the original story. Stories that could be considered features may be disqualified from this category.
Coverage of a general or spot news event where communicating information to viewers is an immediate and primary objective. The goal of this category is to highlight television photojournalism under deadline pressure. Submissions that include creative and compelling live shots score higher in this category. The entry must have been shot, edited and broadcast within 4 hours.
A stand alone package, a straight live shot, or a live shot with video element(s) may be submitted. An unedited segment from a station’s continuous live coverage of an ongoing news event may be submitted in this category as long as the clip doesn’t exceed the 3 minute time limit. (Anchor tosses and questions are permitted for this type of entry.) Original helicopter aerial video may be treated as file in this category.
A feature or human interest story shot and edited within 48 consecutive hours - OR - within a total time frame of 16 non-consecutive hours. If qualifying under the “16 non-consecutive” hour criteria any regular activity normally associated with story production must be accounted for in these “hours.” This includes but is not limited to shooting/editing day research and brainstorming, shooting day travel, shooting day preparation, story shooting, interaction with subjects, field production, story construction, logging, writing, and editing.
A planned story where the photojournalist puts considerable time and effort into the production of the story. A series of stories that aired on successive days may be submitted as one entry as long as the sum of the parts does not exceed 10 minutes.
To qualify for the title Photographer of the Year, Top Photographer of the Year or Elite Photographer of the Year, a photojournalist must submit clips in three of the five categories during the contest year. There is no requirement for a photojournalist to place winners in any set number of categories.
Entries in the TVQCC will be judged by a panel of your peers or by a single photographer who has achieved ELITE status. The judges will be selected and assembled by the pool chair. All efforts will be taken in selecting judges that do not have conflicts of interest. Judges will represent and act in the best interest of the NPPA.
Judges must choose a first, second and third place in each category if there are at least four entries in a given category. If there are fewer than four entries in a particular category a first, second and/or third place may or may not be awarded. There can be no ties. Judges may at their sole discretion award an honorable mention in any category.
With membership and participation comes the expectation to serve as a judge. In order to retain their ELITE status, ELITE photographers must judge two categories over the course of the year.
Points awarded will be as follows:
The United States is broken into three geographical divisions; the NPPA West, the NPPA Central and the NPPA East (see the Map). Any television photojournalist who operates primarily outside the fifty United States (50% of the time or greater) qualifies for the TVQCC International Pool.
![[geographical division map with hypothetical 2008 TOP stations marked]](region_map.gif)
Each TV station that participates in the TVQCC is assigned one of two designations; “general” or “top.” There are 10 TOP stations in each geographical division. A station earns TOP status by having its photojournalists perform well in the TVQCC. (The hypothetical TOP stations for 2008 are marked on the map above, or you can check the list.) This forms two pools of competition within each geographical division; the GENERAL pool and the TOP pool – for six pools of competition in all. Photojournalists submit their work in the pool to which their station belongs. A station’s status does not change during the year of competition.
Freelance photojournalists who operate primarily within the fifty United States (50% of the time or greater) typically enter in a GENERAL pool of competition. Online video journalists who wish to enter this competition may do so after notifying the national chair. These journalists typically enter in a GENERAL pool of competition. Photojournalists working for stations that have never entered the TVQCC submit in a GENERAL pool of competition.
Beyond these six pools of competitions and regardless of geographical divisions or station statuses, the 40 most successful TVQCC photojournalists from across the country do not enter their work in their station’s pool. Instead they compete individually against one another in a seventh, national pool; the NPPA ELITE Pool.
(For an example, check the hypothetical list of ELITE TVQCC journalists for 2008).
With membership and participation comes the expectation to serve as a judge. In order to retain their ELITE status, ELITE photographers must judge two categories over the course of the year. ELITE photographers have the option of judging by themselves, with no other panel members. They judge categories from the three GENERAL pools of competition, the Online Video Journalist pool, the Solo Video Journalist pool and the International pool.
The titles Photographer of the Year, Top Photographer of the Year and Elite Photographer of the Year are awarded to the photojournalists who accumulate the most points during the year in each respective pool. A photojournalist moving in the middle of the year may carry Photographer of the Year points to his/her new station if the new station competes in the same pool as the former station. The moving photojournalist may only participate in one pool at a time and may not exceed the two (or three for 2009) entry maximum per quarter.
For the 2009 contest, a photojournalist will be allowed to enter three clips per quarter if one of those clips is submitted in the Deadline News category.
Seven Photographers of the Year
To qualify for the title Photographer of the Year, Top Photographer of the Year or Elite Photographer of the Year, a photojournalist must submit clips in three of the five categories during the contest year. There is no requirement for a photojournalist to place winners in any set number of categories.
The titles Station of the Year and Top Station of the Year are awarded to the photography staffs that accumulate the most points during the year in each respective pool. Photojournalists’ “winning” points are counted in the Station of the Year race. Counting “entry” points would give large staffs an unfair advantage. A photojournalist changing stations in the middle of the year may not carry Station of the Year points to his/her new station. Station of the Year points are counted for the station where the work was produced.
An ELITE photojournalist’s “winning” points count double toward his/her station’s Station of the Year race. (“Entry” points do not count.)
Six Stations of the Year:
When judging for the year is complete ELITE photojournalists are ranked 1-40. Photojournalists #32 through #40 (approximately the bottom 20%) lose “elite” status and compete the following year in the pool to which their station belongs. These nine photojournalists are replaced in the following year’s ELITE competition with each division’s TOP Photographer of the Year and TOP Photographer of the Year Runner Up and each division’s GENERAL Photographer of the Year.
If there are ties in the ELITE ranks, the following is used to break any deadlocks: (This may seem excessive however tiebreakers are important for the ranking process.)
These tiebreakers are also used for determining “Photographer of the Year” titles.
At the end of each year TOP stations are ranked 1-10. The #9 and #10 stations (the bottom 20%) lose “top” status and are entered into the corresponding GENERAL pool for the following year’s competition. They are replaced in the TOP pool by the Station of the Year and the Station of the Year Runner Up from the corresponding GENERAL pool.
If there are ties the following is used to break the deadlock:
These tiebreakers are also used for determining “Station of the Year” titles.
The number of TOP stations and the number of ELITE photojournalists fluctuate with contest participation.
The 40 ELITE photographers will be listed on the TVQCC home web page. All TOP stations in each geographical division will be listed on the TVQCC home web page. Certificates will be awarded for every 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and Honorable Mention winners each quarter. Plaques will be given for all Photographers of the Year and Stations of the Year.
The top three 2008 photojournalists from each of the eleven regions will qualify for the 2009 ELITE pool. Additionally any Regional Photographer of the Year from 2005, 2006 and 2007 will be eligible. With these qualifications, there will likely be more than 40 ELITE photojournalists for the 2009 contest. At the end of the 2009 contest the top 31 will retain “elite” status. The remainder will be replaced with nine photographers from the TOP and GENERAL pools as outline above. Starting with the 2010 contest there will be 40 ELITE Photojournalists.
The 2009 TOP ten stations for each geographical division will be determined by counting each station’s 2008 regional points (according to the new contest rules). Each station will be ranked according to those points in the new geographic divisional breakdown. The ten stations with the most points in each geographical division will achieve “top” designation.
The International Pool, the Online Video Journalist Pool and the Solo Video Journalist Pool will be outlined in the coming weeks. Except for being on a national and international stage, these pools will operate similarly to the current regional TV quarterly competition.
The International Pool targets journalists who primarily shoot video for broadcast outside the United States. The Online Video Journalist Pool is intended for journalists who shoot video for their news organizations online product. The Solo Video Journalist Pool is geared for journalists who do it all; report, shoot, write and edit - either for broadcast or web.
