Tuesday, October 27, 1998

Barry Sherman, Director, Peabody Awards, 706/542-3787
Kim Cretors, PR Coordinator, Peabody Awards, 706/542-8983

ATHENS, Ga. -- Entry forms for the 58th annual George Foster Peabody Awards are in the mail. More than 85,000 television, cable, and radio broadcasting professionals -- throughout the United States as well as internationally -- will receive the mailing. The entry deadline, for programs broadcast or cablecast in 1998, is January 15, 1999.

The Peabody Award, considered to be the industry’s most prestigious prize, recognizes distinguished achievement and meritorious public service by radio and television stations, networks, producing organizations, and individuals. On average, only 25 to 30 Peabody Awards are presented each year, making the prize one of the most competitive in broadcasting and cable.

The University of Georgia’s Henry W. Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication administers the Peabody Award, as it has since the program’s inception in 1940. The entries are judged by a 15-member National Advisory Board, which meets at the University of Georgia each spring for intensive deliberations. Board members include television critics, broadcast and cable industry executives, and experts in culture and fine arts. The awards will be announced in April and will be presented at a ceremony on May 17, 1999, at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York.

Beginning this year, in partnership with The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation -- the nation’s largest philanthropy devoted to health and health care -- the Peabody Award will recognize excellence in health and medical journalism with a special award. A medical program or series winning a Peabody Award will be eligible for further designation as the recipient of the Peabody/Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Award.

The producers of the program or series selected as the recipient of the new award will receive a cash prize of $10,000 to develop and produce follow-up programming in the same topic area or to develop and produce new programming. A week-long Peabody/Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Award Fellowship will be offered to provide educational experiences for winning reporters, writers, or producers at the nation's top medical schools, teaching hospitals, and research facilities. The winning program or series also will be repackaged and distributed to medical and public health institutions and to producers, broadcasters, and cablecasters across the United States.

For further information regarding the Peabody Awards, the Peabody/Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Award, or to request an entry form, call (706) 542-3787, e-mail the Peabody office at peabody@arches.uga.edu, or visit the Peabody web site at www.peabody.uga.edu.

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