Newspapers Canada is pleased to announce a partnership with PEI 2014 to raise awareness about the sesquicentennial anniversary of the historic Charlottetown Conference of 1864, which paved the way to Canadian Confederation.
During this important anniversary year, over 150 festivals, events and activities will take place across the province to commemorate Prince Edward Island’s unique role in the formation of Canada.
In recognition of this landmark event, Newspapers Canada and PEI 2014 will host a one-time national newspaper competition titled The History of Canada in the Nation’s Front Pages. Nine of the original 36 Fathers of Confederation were in the newspaper business and this special initiative will highlight the important role that newspapers have played and continue to play in the shaping of Canada as a nation.
Newspapers Canada will invite industry experts and members of the public to vote on the top newspaper front-pages from the past 150 years. The competition will recognize front-page stories representing a range of significant and uniquely Canadian events, issues and people. The eight entry categories will include Canadian Communities; Canada on the International Stage; Canada’s Armed Forces; Canadian Heroes; Canadian Arts, Entertainment and Culture; Canadian Achievements in Science and Technology; Canadian Sports; and Canadian Politics.
We encourage newspapers of all sizes to hold a local reader engagement exercise— contest, online poll, etc.—to select their submissions for each Front Pages category. Stories dating from 1864 to present day will be eligible.
Once the Front Pages contest has officially launched, Newspapers Canada will provide a series of promotional ads that newspapers can use to invite members of the public to take part in the voting process for the national competition. Resources and press releases will also be distributed via the association’s CommunityWire service for use in newspaper coverage regarding the sesquicentennial anniversary.
The list of finalists will be announced at the end of May and put on display at the INK+BEYOND national newspaper conference in Charlottetown on May 28-30.
“We are thrilled to be collaborating with PEI 2014 on this historic initiative,” says John Hinds, CEO of Newspapers Canada. “The Front Pages contest will showcase the many ways in which newspapers have shaped Canadian identity and captured our nation’s history through the unique stories they tell.”
“PEI 2014 is very excited about our partnership with Newspapers Canada,” says Penny Walsh McGuire, PEI 2014 Executive Director. “Our goal is to spread the word about the celebrations planned for the 150th anniversary of the historic Charlottetown Conference to as many Canadians as possible. This contest has incredible potential to reach a huge number of Canadians and to encourage them to celebrate our country’s beginnings in a fun and compelling way.”
For more information about the PEI 2014 sesquicentennial celebrations, please visit www.pei2014.ca and follow @PEI2014 on Twitter.
If you have any questions about the Front Pages competition, please contact Newspapers Canada Awards Coordinator Taylor Kormann at tkormann@newspaperscanada.ca.
