RWTH Award for Science Journalism

  Martin Lux

Science communicated in an exemplary manner: Dr. Max Rauner, Tanja Krämer, and Dr. Christian Jung, from left, received the 2011 RWTH Award for Science Journalism from Vice-Rector Professor Günther Schuh.

 

Purpose

The research community deplores the growing skepticism directed towards commercial systems and the related research.  Nuclear enginereing and gene technology are examples of such complex and complicated areas of application within practice-oriented science.  If research wishes to create or receive acceptance, it must provide comprehensive and above all understandable information. It is becoming ever more important to provide an understanding of scientific matters.

The RWTH Award for Science Journalism honors outstanding work in the media within this process.  First awarded in 1993, the prize is given to particularly successful examples of representing scientific topics in the press, in radio, and television every two years by a notable jury.

A prize will be awarded for the category Radio in 2013.

The endowment for the awards totals 3000 Euros, which is broken down as:

1^st Place: 1500 Euros

2^nd Place: 1000 Euros

3^rd Place: 500 Euros

Requirements

Submitted pieces must deal with topics that are covered by RWTH Aachen institutes, chairs, and clinics, but not necessarily a concrete research project at RWTH Aachen.  Submitted pieces that have multi- and interdisciplinary components are preferred.

 

2013 Award

The application period coincides with the lecture period of the winter semester before prizes are awarded, that is from the middle of October to the middle of February. This year the application period lasts till the end of March 2013.  Pieces must have been published within the last two years at the time of submission.  Older pieces will not be accepted.

Selection

After formal evaluation by the Press Office, submissions are sent to the respective subject representatives at RWTH Aachen, for factual evaluation.  The remaining submissions are then given to the jury, which finally nominates an award winner. The Rectorate of RWTH Aachen appoints the jury, which is made up of representatives from media and the university. 

The award ceremony for the RWTH Award for Science Journalism 2013 will take place in the spring of 2014 during RWTHtransparent.