The New England Better Newspaper Competition is New England’s most prestigious recognition program for college journalism, and we’re excited to invite your newsroom to participate in the 2025 contest.

Since 2022, student news organizations from across Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont have competed in 32 categories, including College Newspaper of the Year. Participation has grown each year, with more than 20 colleges and universities entering.

This is your opportunity to showcase your students’ best work, benchmark against peers, and gain regional recognition for excellence in journalism.

To celebrate the opening of entries for the 2025 New England Better Newspaper Competition, NENPA is offering a limited-time Academic Membership discount. Click here to learn more about membership and expanded benefits. Join now and get 10 free contest entries included with your membership — perfect for student publications preparing to submit their best work.

Eligibility & Entry Details:

• Open to all college and university publications in New England, regardless of NENPA membership status
• Each publication may submit up to 10 entries for a flat fee of $125
• Entries must be published (print or online) between August 1, 2024 – July 31, 2025

Download the Information Packet, which includes:

✔ Full description of competition categories
✔ Rules and entry guidelines
✔ Judging criteria

Important Dates:

• Entry Deadline: Friday, November 14, 2025
• Awards will be presented at the annual New England Newspaper Convention in Spring 2026 (location and dates to be announced soon).

We look forward to seeing your students’ work in this year’s competition. If you have any questions, please email students@nenpa.com.

Learn more about the Better Newspaper Competition

Download the Information Packet

Learn more about NENPA Academic Membership

Submit your entries

Entries are now open for this year’s New England Better Newspaper Competition, and this year’s contest is bigger and better than ever!

To reflect the evolving landscape of journalism, we’ve added eight new award categories designed to showcase innovation, community impact, and diverse storytelling. These new additions recognize the creative ways journalists are connecting with audiences — from social media and lifestyle writing to coverage of critical issues shaping our region.

New award categories (descriptions below):

• Social Media Portfolio
• Home & Garden Writing
• Housing News
• Critics Award
• Good News Award
• Protest and Demonstration Coverage
• Immigration Reporting
• 250th Celebration Coverage

Whether you’re an investigative reporter, a feature writer, a student journalist, or part of a newsroom team, there’s a place for your work in this year’s competition. We can’t wait to see the stories, photos, and projects that have made a difference in your communities.

The Better Newspaper Competition remains New England’s largest and most prestigious journalism awards program, honoring the skill, passion, and dedication that fuel outstanding local news coverage across all platforms.

Work published by NENPA member news organizations during the contest year, August 1, 2024, to July 31, 2025, is eligible for this competition.

The competition has three divisions:

• Editorial/Multimedia/Photography Division – Download Editorial Information Packet
• Advertising/Circulation/Promotion Division – Download Advertising Information Packet
• College/University Division – Download College Information Packet

Download the information packets, where you will find all of the information necessary to prepare your entries, including a list of competitive categories, complete rules and guidelines, and the criteria that each contest category will be judged upon.

To get started, follow these easy steps:

1. Go to www.newspapercontest.com/nenpa to register.
2. The portal resets each year, so you’ll need to register even if you entered last year.
3. Create a password. (We don’t store last year’s password, so you’ll need to set a new one. You can reuse the same password if you wish.)
4. Enter the Association Code: NENPA

The final deadline for all entries is Friday, November 14, 2025.

Awards will be presented at the annual New England Newspaper Convention in Spring 2026 (location and dates to be announced soon).

We wish you the very best of luck in this year’s competition! If questions come up while preparing your entries, please email L.Conway@nenpa.com or T.Cleary@nenpa.com.

New Award Categories

Social Media Portfolio – This category recognizes consistent outstanding storytelling published on your newsroom’s social media channels. Judges will consider creative and effective use of multimedia elements such as video, audio, photography, graphics, and more. Submit three examples from platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, or others that show your best work.

Home & Garden Writing – This award honors home and garden writing that combines creativity, service, and storytelling to inspire and inform readers. It recognizes work that offers fresh perspectives on how people live, design, and grow—whether through practical advice, design features, cultural insight, or profiles of local homes and gardens. Entries should demonstrate excellence in writing, visual presentation, and relevance to contemporary lifestyles.

Housing News – This category highlights impactful coverage of housing-related issues such as affordability, development, zoning, homelessness, displacement, tenants’ rights, and the politics and economics of housing. It recognizes journalism that delivers clear, in-depth coverage relevant to the local community.

Critics Award – An article, essay, column or review on any entertainment or culture topic, including (but not limited to) theatre, book, music, movie, and dining reviews. Entries must be written by full- or part-time members of the newspaper staff, or written exclusively for the newspaper submitting the entry

Good News Award – For outstanding journalism that highlights the uplifting, heartwarming, and hopeful stories that remind us of the good in the world. Whether spotlighting acts of kindness, everyday heroes, resilient communities, or creative solutions, these stories should be thoughtfully reported and beautifully told. Judges will look for originality, emotional resonance, and storytelling that goes beyond clichés—leaving readers informed, inspired, and maybe even smiling.

Protest and Demonstration Coverage – Honoring excellence in local journalism that covers protests and civil demonstrations with depth, integrity, and impact. It recognizes journalists and newsrooms that bring attention to community voices, uncover the roots of civic unrest, and provide accurate, courageous, and ethically sound reporting—often under challenging or high-risk conditions. Entries should reflect a strong commitment to fairness, context, and storytelling that elevates public understanding.

Immigration Reporting – This award honors outstanding journalism that illuminates the complexities of immigration with accuracy, depth, and humanity. It recognizes work that elevates underrepresented voices, holds institutions accountable, and deepens public understanding of immigration issues through ethical, impactful, and innovative storytelling. Entries will be judged on quality and clarity of writing, and importance to the local community.

250th Celebration Coverage – This award celebrates outstanding journalism that explores and illuminates the significance of America’s 250th anniversary. Entries should demonstrate journalistic excellence while offering meaningful insight into the nation’s history, identity, and future. Submissions may address themes such as democracy, civil rights, civic engagement, local or national unity and division, or underrepresented narratives that shape the American experience. Judges will consider work that is accurate, original, impactful, and inclusive—using powerful storytelling to connect past and present as the country marks this historic milestone.

A great time was had by all at The Dubliner in Boston during the September journalist meetup, where a lively crowd of media professionals gathered for trivia, conversation, and plenty of laughs. The event brought together journalists from across New England to connect, collaborate, and unwind in a relaxed and friendly setting.

Next up, the series continues with a return to Tiki Tuesday at Tiki Rock on Tuesday, October 14, from 6–8 p.m. Join fellow journalists and media pros at Tiki Rock on Broad Street in Boston for a tropical-themed evening of conversation and cocktails.

These events are open to all journalists and media professionals in the region and are hosted by a coalition of journalism organizations — the New England Society of News Editors, Boston Association of Black Journalists, AAJA-New England, NAHJ-New England, and NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists, with support from the New England Newspaper & Press Association (NENPA).

📩 RSVP or questions? Contact Emily Sweeney at emily.sweeney@globe.com.

Also happening this week, all are welcome to attend the Boston Association of Black Journalists Fall Networking Mixer at Savvor Restaurant and Lounge, located at 180 Lincoln St, Boston, MA, on Thursday, October 16, from 7-10 pm.

The New Hampshire Center for Public Interest Journalism invites you to celebrate InDepthNH.org’s 10th anniversary on Tuesday, Oct. 22, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at the McAuliffe/Shepard Discovery Center in Concord.

This special evening will highlight our past, present, and future with:

• Guest speaker Dick Tofel, former president of ProPublica, the nationally recognized nonprofit investigative news outlet.

• Steve Taylor, independent scholar, farmer, journalist, longtime public official, and former New Hampshire agriculture commissioner, now serving on our board.

• George Bald, former NH Commissioner of the Department of Resources and Economic Development and board member, who has dedicated his career to public service.

Guests will enjoy a meet-and-greet with our writers, board members, and friends, along with light refreshments, a cash bar, complimentary bumper stickers, and a few surprises—including a skit.

🎉 Join us for an evening of conversation, community, and celebration of independent journalism in New Hampshire.

Tickets are still available: Eventbrite Link

We look forward to seeing you on Oct. 22!

— Nancy West

Learn more

We’re thrilled to announce the opening of this year’s New England Better Newspaper Competition! We are introducing eight new award categories to spotlight emerging voices and honor excellence across a broader range of reporting and storytelling.

Whether you’re an investigative journalist, a feature writer, or a rising student reporter, there’s a category for you. Submissions are now open, and we can’t wait to see the impactful journalism you’ve produced this year.

The Better Newspaper Competition is New England’s largest journalism recognition program. This prestigious competition celebrates the skill, passion, and determination it takes to produce top-quality publications. It offers an exciting opportunity for talented newspaper professionals to be recognized for their exceptional work.

Work published by NENPA member news organizations during the contest year, August 1, 2024, to July 31, 2025, is eligible for this competition.

The competition has three divisions:

• Editorial/Multimedia/Photography Division – Download Editorial Information Packet
• Advertising/Circulation/Promotion Division – Download Advertising Information Packet
• College/University Division – Download College Information Packet

Download the information packets, where you will find all of the information necessary to prepare your entries, including a list of competitive categories, complete rules and guidelines, and the criteria that each contest category will be judged upon.

In the Frequently Asked Questions page at the end of this packet, you can find additional information on preparing entries, such as how to make PDF files smaller, extract particular pages, and combine several PDF files.

To get started, follow these easy steps:

1. Go to www.newspapercontest.com/nenpa to register.
2. The portal resets each year, so you’ll need to register even if you entered last year.
3. Create a password. (We don’t store last year’s password, so you’ll need to set a new one. You can reuse the same password if you wish.)
4. Enter the Association Code: NENPA

New award categories for this year:

• Social Media Portfolio
• Home & Garden Writing
• Housing News
• Critics Award
• Good News Award
• Protest and Demonstration Coverage
• Immigration Reporting
• 250th Celebration Coverage

The final deadline for all entries is Friday, November 14, 2025.

Awards will be presented at the annual New England Newspaper Convention in Spring 2026 (location and dates to be announced soon).

We wish you the very best of luck in this year’s competition! If questions come up while preparing your entries, please email L.Conway@nenpa.com or T.Cleary@nenpa.com.

This year marks the 85th celebration of National Newspaper Week, October 5-11, 2025, sponsored by Newspaper Association Managers since 1940. The celebration recognizes the essential role newspapers play in keeping our communities informed, connected, and engaged. NENPA is proud to complement this national effort through the Know Your News campaign, which gives newsrooms ready-to-publish content and social media assets to help amplify the message and make it local.

Local journalism is the heartbeat of civic life. It informs citizens with the news they need to make everyday decisions, from voting to attending town meetings. It holds local institutions accountable, shines a light on neighborhood stories and people often overlooked by national outlets, and strengthens the economy by supporting small businesses through advertising and partnerships.

To build on this important work, thank you to all the newsrooms that have already signed on to the Know Your News campaign. If your newsroom hasn’t yet participated, there’s still time to get involved. NENPA membership is not required. The campaign provides materials that align with the goals of National Newspaper Week and help you demonstrate the value of a free press in your own community.

By taking part in both National Newspaper Week and the Know Your News campaign, your newsroom can make the celebration local and relevant for readers. Consider focusing on:

• Your role as a government watchdog

• Your coverage of local events, issues, and people

• Your dedication to publishing timely public notices

• Any other ways your paper contributes meaningfully to civic life

Together, these efforts reinforce the power of association — when newspapers across the region and nation speak with one voice, the message about the vital role of journalism becomes stronger.

👉 Access National Newspaper Week materials
👉 Get Know Your News content

Don’t miss the chance to be part of this united effort—sign on today and help show your readers why local journalism matters more than ever.

For assistance signing up for the campaign and accessing the content, please email Tara Cleary at t.cleary@nenpa.com.