Knight Foundation extends Challenge deadline
Posted by Lisette García on October 12, 2009 at 10:43 AM
Although the Knight Foundation has received a record number of entries, it has extended the deadline for its fourth annual Knight News Challenge by two months to December 15. The extension was done to reach out to communities of entrepreneurs and software developers to "further increase the diversity of ideas," according to Matt Thompson, interim online community manager of the foundation.
Gary Kebbel, programme director of the News Challenge, told the Niemen Journalism Lab that although total applications were down 20 percent compared to last year, due to ending a commercial section of the contest, applications to the open-source competition were up.
Gary Kebbel, programme director of the News Challenge, told the Niemen Journalism Lab that although total applications were down 20 percent compared to last year, due to ending a commercial section of the contest, applications to the open-source competition were up.
Winners are promised up to US$5 million for a concept that:
A fourth, unwritten rule, is that the project may not later be used to bring its innovators overwhelming commercial success. Last year, nine innovators shared nearly $2 million in prize money. The contest is open to anyone, anywhere, but submissions must be made via an online dropbox.
Following the announcement at MIT of last year's winners, Kebbel explained the competition's purpose to the Nieman Journalism Lab at Harvard University:
"[W]hat the News Challenge did is it said to us and to the world: We don't know the answers. We're going to ask the world what are the answers to this problem. Here's a problem: information flow to communities. And we don't know the answers except that we see that the news ecosystem is in trouble. So, what are we going to do about it? It's a very open process that is seeking experimentation and innovation."
- uses digital, open-source technology;
- distributes news in the public interest; and,
- has been tested in a local community.
A fourth, unwritten rule, is that the project may not later be used to bring its innovators overwhelming commercial success. Last year, nine innovators shared nearly $2 million in prize money. The contest is open to anyone, anywhere, but submissions must be made via an online dropbox.
Following the announcement at MIT of last year's winners, Kebbel explained the competition's purpose to the Nieman Journalism Lab at Harvard University:
"[W]hat the News Challenge did is it said to us and to the world: We don't know the answers. We're going to ask the world what are the answers to this problem. Here's a problem: information flow to communities. And we don't know the answers except that we see that the news ecosystem is in trouble. So, what are we going to do about it? It's a very open process that is seeking experimentation and innovation."
Last month, one of the News Challenge's most ambitious entries to date - everyblock.com - was purchased by mainstream media organisation msnbc.com. The commercial success of that hyperlocal news venture has caused the Knight Foundation to reconsider its future relationships with startups with profit potential.
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