The Center for Responsive Politics (CRP) has partnered with Helium to bring you the OpenSecrets.org Citizen Journalism Awards. Compete by writing unique, compelling articles about money's influence on US elections and public policy. You could be named the next OpenSecrets.org Citizen Journalist and win a cash prize.
About the Contest
The assignment: CRP will feature one new title each month. Follow CRP's article guidelines, research the featured topic using OpenSecrets.org and other resources and write a compelling article for your chance to win.
The awards: CRP will pick one winning article each month. The winning writer will receive an OpenSecrets.org Citizen Journalism Award and a $100 cash prize from CRP.
CRP will also feature the winning articles on its website and in its email newsletters, which reach thousands of journalists, activists, academics and citizens.
Get started
1. Pick a title: See CRP's current contest title below. You can also visit CRP's partner page at Helium to write to more (noncontest) titles.
2. Research: OpenSecrets.org is an unparalleled resource for researching the influence of industries and interests in U.S. politics, and on issues that affect all our lives. The more you draw on OpenSecrets.org in your article, the better. Please attribute all data and statistics and provide URLs, whether you find the information on OpenSecrets.org or elsewhere. Expressing your opinion is fine, but please back it up with facts.
3. Write: Write a unique, well-researched article in 750 words or less. You can submit articles to this contest until noon on Friday, August 8. CRP's staff will begin reviewing essays on August 5 from the top articles rated by the Helium community. Selection will be based on the most compelling essay and the winner will be the essay that brings the freshest insight on the issue presented.
4. Submit: File your article at Helium.com, where other Helium users will be able to read and rate it. CRP will pick the contest's winner from among the top-rated articles.
Current Contest Title
How have campaign contributions and lobbying efforts influenced policy on an issue you care about?
Submit your article before the contest for this title expires on Friday, August 8.
If you have questions, e-mail editor@crp.org.
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