About and rules

MISSION

Quality journalism is of vital importance to healthy democracies – and cartoonists play a crucial role in this system of checks and balances. Their creations are the hallmark of an open society. With just a single image they hold up a mirror, make change negotiable, and foster public debate.

Cartoons are an important part of an open conversation, because they help us question old ideas and introduce new ones. Yet, more than any other form of journalism, cartoons are feeling the strain of the shrinking space for freedom of expression.

The European Cartoon Award was founded by the European Press Prize and Studio Europa Maastricht in 2019 – the year in which the New York Times decided to stop running editorial cartoons altogether. Studio Europa Maastricht and the European Press Prize aim to award courage and quality in the field of cartooning and foster conversation on the topic of Europe.

To encourage cartoonists to continue their essential task, we have launched the European Cartoon Award, worth €10,000.

WHO CAN ENTER

  • Cartoonists operating in the 46 countries of Europe (as defined by the Council of Europe) plus Belarus and Russia.
  • If a cartoonist is physically unable to enter work, another cartoonist can nominate and submit a cartoon on behalf of a colleague.
  • Freelance cartoonists who produce work in print or online can enter the competition if their submitted work has been published by newspapers, magazines, or news sites during the allowed time frame.


WHAT CAN BE SUBMITTED

  • A maximum of three cartoons per participant.
  • If the work is part of a series, the submitter will be asked to disclose this in the entry form.
  • Cartoons with captions are submitted in the original language. An English translation must be provided in the entry form.
  • The work submitted must have its first publication date between June 2, 2023 and 2 June, 2024, and must have been published in European media (Council of Europe plus Belarus and Russia).
  • Works published by the Cartoon Movement will be accepted only if marked as “Editorial choice” by the Cartoon Movement’s editor-in-chief.


HOW TO SUBMIT

  • A participant must complete the questionnaire in the online form (active during the submission period) to provide the requested information and some background on the entry.
  • We will not accept cartoons submitted via email.
  • All the material must be submitted electronically. Cartoons must be submitted in JPEG format, with a resolution of 1080 x 1080 pixels minimum.
  • If a URL for the online publication of the cartoon is added, entrants are responsible for making sure the URL works and remains active until the Award winner is announced.


Judging procedure

After the entries have come in, they will be evaluated by the Panel of judges, in three rounds of voting.
The jury’s choices and the resulting shortlist will be published on the European Press Prize website.
The Panel of judges makes the final selection for the winner.
The following rules ensure a fair judging process:
(I) Jury members cannot enter the contest in the year they are judging.
(II) Each jury member, whether an ordinary member or chair, has one equal vote.
(III) Judges cannot abstain from voting at any stage of the judging process.
(IV) All proceedings and deliberations of each jury are conducted in confidence.
(V) All entries are coded, with identifying information removed from the text so the work is judged anonymously. At no stage of the process – and in no discussion either in or outside the judging rooms – should jury members speculate on, or reveal, any names of participating journalists, newsrooms or publications.
(VI) If the jury members recognize they are personally involved in submitted work, through either a personal or professional relationship, they must declare their interest openly at the beginning of any discussions on the work.
(VII) The judges must select a winner and a runner-up. The award ceremony of the fourth edition will take place on 17 October 2024 in The Hague (the Netherlands).


Shortlist

After the Panel of judges chooses the first preliminary shortlist, cartoonists can be contacted for additional material.

If you have any questions or want to recommend projects you have seen, email us at [email protected]. Due to the volume of emails we receive, we cannot guarantee a reply to all of them.