FAQ
What kinds of projects are you looking for?
We're looking for sustainable new models that have the potential to support arts journalism. These can be established projects or startups, but must already be launched or on a clear trajectory to launching. Size of the project is not necessarily a factor, but impact is. We're not looking for concepts or theoretical ideas that do not yet exist.
Projects can be in any medium, including online, print, broadcast or an amalgam of any media. Successful projects will offer a business model that has the potential to be sustainable. The project will also demonstrate a viable way of doing arts journalism that contributes meaningfully to the coverage of the arts. Who is your audience? What value are you providing? What innovations are you offering that don't just try to preserve traditional arts journalism but also improve on the established models. Above all, we're looking for viability, both as a business and as a journalistic enterprise.
What you NOT looking for?
We're not looking for blogs unless there's something that makes your blog both sustainable as a business model and replicable. There are currently 300,000 arts blogs out there, so what is different and better about the 300,001st? We're not looking for print publications that have to be heavily subsidized or for part-time projects that can't support themselves. We love great stories done well, but we're not looking for a well-done story, no matter how great it is, unless it points the way to a sustainable ongoing way to cover the arts. Are you simply printing reviews online that otherwise would have appeared in print? Fine if you have a model to sustain it, but we need to hear a compelling case for its success.
Who is eligible to apply?
Any project in Canada or the USA is eligible, but the project must already have launched or be on a clear trajectory to launch in 2009. You need not be an American citizen.
How do we submit a project?
Go to the submission page and fill out the form.
What materials are required for submission?
The form is self-explanatory. Think of this as a business plan. The most important questions are: How will your project support itself? How are you doing arts journalism in a way that improves upon the traditional model?
How soon will my project entry be posted on the website?
Usually within 24 hours.
Can we change details of our entry after it has been submitted?
Yes. Once. We expect visitors to the website will comment on projects that have been submitted. If you want to modify your entry based on the comments, you may do so - but only once after it has first been submitted.
How do we resubmit a project?
Fill out the project submission form again, with the changes exactly as you want them. We will substitute the new submission for the old.
How are projects judged and selected for the Summit?
Submit your project online. Visitors to the Summit website will be able to see the submissions and comment on them through August 17. A panel of distinguished arts journalists will evaluate the submissions and choose the five projects to be invited to present at the Summit. After the Summit, the 500 members of the National Arts Journalism Program and the alumni of the NEA Arts Journalism Institutes will vote on the five Summit projects. Winners will be announced in late October.
Who are these NEA and NAJP voters?
The National Arts Journalism Program is a membership organization of some 500 member professional arts journalists across America. You can read more about the organization at najp.org. The National Endowment for the Arts has funded four institutes in arts journalism: theatre and musical theatre at USC Annenberg School for Communication, classical music and opera at the Graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University, dance at the American Dance Festival at Duke University and visual art at the Museum of American University. In all, some 300 arts journalists have participated in the NEA arts journalism institutes.
How will I find out if my project has been chosen?
An announcement of the chosen projects will be made on the Summit website September 1. No other notifications will be made. Please do not call or email to inquire if your project has been chosen.
What will be expected of the winners?
Each project chosen to present for the Summit on October 2, 2009 at the USC Annenberg School in Los Angeles will be expected to send a representative to make a 7-10 minute multimedia presentation about his or her project. Summit organizers will provide assistance in preparing the presentations.
What expenses will I have to cover if my project is chosen?
The Summit will cover travel and lodging expenses in addition to some meals. All other incidentals are your own personal expense.
Who owns the presentations?
You do, and you can use them in promoting your project. The Summit reserves the right to host and stream the presentations. They will be produced under a Creative Commons license. Summit organizers have final approval over all presentation content.
Who will be watching/attending the Summit?
The Summit is conceived of primarily as an online event. We will be streaming and live-blogging the event. We are also organizing groups around the country to watch the Summit together and discuss the projects (If you would like to organize a group, please contact us at summitinfo@najp.org). We will have a small invited audience at USC Annenberg that includes funders, journalists, media entrepreneurs, and cultural leaders.
Why are you doing this?
Coverage of the arts is becoming impoverished in the traditional press. We believe that a healthy culture requires robust public discourse. If arts journalism is increasingly not viable in traditional media, we are committed to helping to find or create new and better models. We're choosing some interesting ideas, and we're asking you for help in choosing five of them. There are many ideas currently buzzing for attention. Our intention here is to try to identify some of the most promising and give them wider circulation.
How do we contact you?
Email: summitinfo@najp.org