The contest is open to all journalists working in or for written (daily, weekly, monthly print or online) press, or audiovisual (TV stations, production houses, and online TV networks). The award is granted and fully funded by the European Union and is open, as per European Union rules, to nationals of the following countries: Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.

Candidates must submit an opinion article, an investigative article, or an audiovisual report centered around one or more of the following topics: rule of law, human rights, good governance, fight against corruption, freedom of expression, democratic development, or citizen participation.

The article must have been published in a print or online media outlet in one of the countries listed above or in one of the European Union Member States (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia Republic, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden). The article must not exceed 25,000 characters and must have been published between March 15, 2019 and March 15, 2020.

The audiovisual news report must have been aired on a local or satellite television network or released on an online television network in one of the countries listed above or in one of the European Union Member States. The report must not exceed 7 minutes and must have been released between March 15, 2019 and March 15, 2020.

Each submission can only fall into one of the three above mentioned categories. Candidates for the opinion article and investigative article categories can only apply on an individual basis. Candidates for the audiovisual news report category must either be the report’s director or the producer and may apply on an individual basis or jointly (director and producer).

The winner in each of the three categories will be awarded €10,000.

The European Union holds the right to reproduce and publish the awarded articles and air the awarded audiovisual report in its own non-commercial publications and websites as well as in any other print or online publications related to the “Samir Kassir Award for Freedom of the Press”.

The selection will be done by a jury composed of journalists and media professionals coming from EU Member States and the participating countries listed above.

Members of the jury, staff of the European Union, and staff and members of the Samir Kassir Foundation are excluded from the contest.