CFINR offers $5,000 prize for unbiased reporting

Texas newspaper journalists are encouraged to enter their best examples of objective hard-news stories to compete for a $5,000 award from the Center for Integrity in News Reporting.

Entries will be judged on the grounds of impartiality, fairness and objectivity.  Writers are encouraged to enter their work —  a single article or a series of articles —  during the annual Texas Better Newspaper Contest. The CFINR contest will be a separate category on the Texas Better Newspaper Contest website. Details on contest information and rules are available on the site.

The Arkansas-based Center for Integrity in News Reporting has launched a new annual journalism awards program in 14 states, including Texas. The awards are funded via a grant administered by the SNPA Foundation.

Each $5,000 state award will be presented at the annual meetings of state press associations in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia. The Texas award will be presented by CFINR officials during the Texas Press Association Convention and Trade Show June 18-20 in Dallas.

“The Center for Integrity in News Reporting is honored to partner with the SNPA Foundation in advancing our shared mission to restore public trust in journalism,” said Rufus Friday, executive director, Center for Integrity in News Reporting.

“Through these state-by-state Integrity in Journalism Awards, we will recognize and celebrate journalists whose work reflects the highest standards of impartial, fair and objective news reporting in their respective states.”

The Center for Integrity in News Reporting was created to address the public’s declining trust in news reporting. Gallup polls show that trust, which was around 70% in the 1970s, has now fallen to 28%. CFINR aims to improve public trust by encouraging and rewarding impartial, objective and fair journalism. By recognizing exemplary reporting, CFINR hopes to restore the standards that once earned widespread trust.

CFINR was founded in 2024 by Walter E. Hussman, Jr., chairman of WEHCO Media, Inc., which operates 11 daily newspapers and cable television companies across six states.

CFINR is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, governed by a board of trustees, all of whom have extensive news experience.

The SNPA Foundation was established in 1968 to provide educational programs for newspaper members of the Southern Newspaper Publishers Association (SNPA). Since its inception, the SNPA Foundation’s seminars, webinars, literacy programs and Traveling Campus have reached more than 100,000 newspaper employees.

Newspapers and newspaper corporations, newspaper industry suppliers, state press associations and numerous individuals have contributed millions of dollars to fund the Foundation’s programs.

SNPA and the Inland Press Association merged in 2019 to form a new association, America’s Newspapers. The SNPA Foundation, however, remains as a separate entity. Its ongoing mission is to enhance the prosperity and the future of newspapers and to promote the value of newspapers to the communities they serve.

The SNPA Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, governed by an elected board of trustees.