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WELCOME TO VJOY 2025!

The countdown has started! Entries close at midnight on Friday, 19 September 2025.

Please follow the entry process carefully to avoid disappointment as any entry not fulfilling the criteria stated herein may be disqualified.

Check especially that all material you are entering was published or broadcast between 01 August 2024 and 31 July 2025.

To be eligible for judging, the content of entries for VJOY 2025 must predominantly cover South African issues. Entries must be produced as well as published or broadcast in South Africa. Work produced by foreign correspondents who work outside the country and produce work for South African media organisations that is targeted for consumption in South Africa may be accepted at the judges' discretion as long as it predominantly covers South African issues.

Please note that books, theses and films, including documentary films, are not eligible for entry.

There is no fee to enter the awards

What you need for your entries

Before you enter, make sure you have the following information ready. All of it is compulsory - and you will not be able to complete your entry without these pieces of information

For all entries, you must provide:

  • Proof of publication or broadcast, clearly showing date thereof.
  • Name(s) and contact details (emails and cell phone numbers) of the journalist(s) whose work is entered.
  • Acknowledgement of all who worked on the entry and their written permission to enter the work in VJOY 2025.
  • Motivation providing the background and context of how the work was researched, developed and produce and any impact that the entry might have had.

To avoid disappointment, make sure you’re entering material that is eligible and conforms to technical specifications.

Use of AI in Entries

There is no rule against the use of AI in preparing entries, as the judges accept that it is a crucial tool to analyse vast data sets or information sources to uncover trends or criminal activity, for example. However, judges will apply their discretion to ensure the work reflects authentic journalism. The following two broad principles apply:

  • Journalists may use AI as a tool, but the creative and written output must be largely their own. Accountability rests with the journalist.
  • Judges will use their discretion to recognise originality, accuracy, and storytelling, and to identify or reject generic AI-stye output that weakens the entry. The final decision on whether to consider an entry or not rests with the judges.

How to enter

Start the entry process by registering online on the Vodacom Journalist of the Year website, providing your personal details and information on the piece(s) you will submit.

When you receive confirmation of your registration, log into the VJOY website and upload your entries and accompanying background details.

Editors may also register on the Vodacom Journalist of the Year Website and enter work on behalf of their journalists but must clearly record the name and contact details of the journalist and/or contributing journalists or producer.

Only contributors who participated directly in researching, developing or producing the content of an entry, as shown in the piece's byline/credits, will be considered eligible entrants of a team entry. The name and contact details of each contributor must then accompany the submission in the credits section of the registration process.

Technical Specifications

It is your responsibility as the entrant to ensure entries uploaded online are complete, legible, audible and/or viewable and adhere to required technical specifications listed below.

Entries via WeTransfer or other allied transfer modes are NOT permitted.

Please follow the technical specifications below applicable to your medium

Radio
A copy of the broadcast must be uploaded in .wav, .mp3 or .ai format together with a full script and an English transcript.

Television
A copy of the broadcast must be uploaded onto YouTube or Vimeo and the link provided together with a full script and an English transcript.

Print
A scan of the published version of the article must be uploaded in .pdf format. Note that this should clearly indicate the dateline and publication name as proof of publication.

Online Journalism
Entrants must provide full-page screen shots of the story in digital format, pdf files showing the full text, images and links, and copies of any of the videos used with the story. If the story is still available online, links must be provided on the VJOY website entry form.

Photography
Photograph(s) should be submitted in .pdf, .jpg or .jpeg (at least 72dpi and 1024 x 768 resolution) in the original colour or black and white in which it was shot. To indicate to the judges the relevance of the photograph(s) to a story or headline, and as proof of publication of the photograph(s), a .pdf scan of the published article (clearly showing dateline and publication name) must also be submitted.

  • The maximum upload size of a file is 400MB.
  • 300DPI Jpegs preferred or link (not behind firewalls)
  • 10 published pictures per entry only.
  • NB unpublished pictures will not qualify for judging.
  • No videography can be submitted for the photography category.

How many entries you can submit

  • A maximum of THREE entries per category will be accepted from one individual – except for the Young Journalist category (see below).
  • Submissions consisting of more than THREE separate entries will be disqualified. A body of work, with maximum three stories, may be submitted as one entry but must cover only one subject.
  • Entrants can only submit work in THREE categories. This means that each entrant can only enter NINE entries at most.
  • In the photographic category, each entry can consist of up to 10 photographs.
  • Entrants must accompany each entry with background information and a brief motivation to the judges as to why they believe the submitted material deserves to win the category entered. You should include, for example, a description of circumstances and challenges affecting the story's development such as volume of research and/or investigation, time, safety and/or financial constraints, as well as an account of any impact the story might have had.
  • An entry must be submitted in only one category, even if it also fulfils the criteria of another category. This means entrants must make choices such as whether to enter a specific piece or body of work, for example, in the Politics or Investigative categories or another in the Sports, Features, Lifestyle or Innovation categories.
  • The judges reserve the right to move any submission to another category should it be deemed necessary.

Entering the young Journalist category

  • Those eligible for this category may enter up to THREE pieces as a portfolio of work produced within the competition period as part of their entry. They may enter any TWO other VJOY category as well, but they should note that only THREE entries are permitted per entrant in each category.
  • Those entering the Young Journalist category must enter as individuals and must have worked in any newsroom for less than three years. Teams of journalists cannot enter the Young Journalist category. Together with their portfolio of work (see above), they must submit a strong motivation (maximum 500 words) as to why they should win and also submit a CV. Regional winners will receive a certificate and become finalists for the national Young Journalist Award.

Which region to enter in

  • All submissions must be entered in the Vodacom region where you are employed or, if you are a freelancer, where your personal office is. This may not be the region where you carried out the reporting: for example, a Johannesburg-based journalist sent to the Free State on assignment should enter the resulting coverage in Gauteng. South African journalists who report for South African media from abroad, must enter in the region where the head office of their media outlets is based. For instance, if you work for the SABC in the United States or Paris, you should enter in the Gauteng region.
  • An entry may not be submitted in more than one region (view regional map) so if a piece has multiple contributors, it cannot be submitted for Gauteng and the Western Cape, for example. Multiple contributors must all enter in the same region, based on the office location of the majority.

The next step…

  • Every entry in each category is eligible for the Regional Awards, provided it complies with all requirements in this list of criteria.
  • All Regional Award winners as well as the Young Journalist category nominees will automatically become finalists for the National Award in that category. National Award Winners, except for the winner of the Young Journalist category, will automatically become finalists for the overall Journalist of the Year Award.
  • Multiple contributors to a winning entry will share any prize equally, whether at regional or national level. This does not apply to the Young Journalist category where entrants must enter in their individual capacities.
  • The judges' decision is final, and no correspondence shall be entered into.
  • Competition T's & C's