New WHCA Award to Recognize Visual Journalism

The White House Correspondents’ Association is very pleased to announce the creation of a new award to honor photojournalism in the coverage of the presidency.

The Award for Excellence in Presidential News Coverage by Visual Journalists will be presented for the first time at the association’s annual dinner on Saturday, April 25. The detailed Call for Entries will be posted soon.

 “Some of the best photographers and videographers in the business cover the White House, capturing the images that help define the presidency,” said Jonathan Karl of ABC News, the president to the association. “This prize will recognize the best of the best.”

The prize, approved by the WHCA board, will recognize a video or photojournalist for uniquely covering the presidency from a journalistic standpoint, either at the White House or in the field. This could be breaking news, a scheduled event or feature coverage.

Competition will be open to all visual journalists who cover the White House on a regular basis, or whose reporting is primarily devoted to coverage of the White House or the presidency.  The award will be based on a single piece of visual journalism during the year ending December 31, 2019. It will come with a prize of $1,000.

The deadline for entries will be Monday, March 2.

The new award will be one of several honoring exemplary journalism at this year’s WHCA dinner. Also to be presented:

• The Aldo Beckman Award for Overall Excellence in White House Coverage;
• The Merriman Smith Award for Excellence in Presidential News Coverage Under Deadline Pressure;

The deadline for submissions for the WHCA awards is March 2.

The details and Call for Entries for each will be posted soon at whca.press.

The 2020 dinner also will include the inaugural presentation of the Collier Prize for State Government Accountability, administered by the University of Florida’s College of Journalism and Communications to honor statehouse reporting. The deadline for submitting entries for that award is Jan. 31. Information about that award and submission information can be found here.

For more information, contact WHCA Executive Director Steve Thomma at 202-266-7453 or director@whca.press