Release: The Iowa Gallup Award
for Excellent Journalism Using Polls

FOR RELEASE: Dec. 19, 2006

Call for entries for 2006 Iowa Gallup Award

Iowa City, IA – The 2006 Iowa Gallup Award for Excellent Journalism Using Polls will be selected in the spring of 2007 from among nominees provided by those in the fields of journalism and professional polling. The call for entries is open until March 1, 2007. To be eligible for the Award, entries must be an original story published, broadcast, or placed on-line between Jan. 1 to Dec. 31, 2006.

This annual award is co-sponsored by The University of Iowa School of Journalism and Mass Communication and The Gallup Organization.

It recognizes the importance of the news media's use of polls in understanding public opinion and shaping discourse on social and political issues. Journalists' accurate, creative and intelligent analysis of polling data can add depth and dimension to their reporting, as well as enhance the quality of public debate. The Iowa Gallup Award is designed to reward news media stories that feature such analysis and thus promote the best use and presentation of polls and data in journalism and media.

Award-winning stories will be accurate in analyzing and interpreting data, have clarity of presentation, and, considering the importance of the story, have implications for public discourse. Complete details of the judging criteria, including the minimal requirements, and an entry form can be found at the award web site http://www.uiowa.edu/jmc/GallupAward.

The recipient of the award will be announced in April. The Iowa Gallup Award and a stipend of $2,500 will be presented at a ceremony at The Gallup Organization in May.

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For more information, contact:

Kim Merchant
Program Assistant
The University of Iowa
School of Journalism and Mass Communication
E305 Adler Journalism Building
Iowa City, IA 52242-2004
kimberly-merchant@uiowa.edu