The Associated Press Sports Editors will conduct the organization’s third annual Web contest, honoring the best online work of our members in 2011.

Deadline to enter is Sept. 16.

Entries will be split into three categories based on your total monthly traffic in terms of unique users. The categories are 2 million and over monthly uniques; 500,000 to 1,999,999 monthly uniques and under 500,000 monthly uniques.

Two random dates from the remainder of the year will be used to judge the sites.

A multimedia category is also part of the online judging. Those entries will be evaluated by a panel selected at our Winter meeting and judging in Orlando in February. Multimedia entries will be due along with the writing and section entries for the standard 2011 APSE contest.

To enter the Web contest, please send an email to APSE Executive Director Jack Berninger (jackapse@aol.com) with the following information:

1. Name of newspaper.

2. Total unique users per month

3. Sports editor submitting entry.

Please note that if your sports department produces individual sites for high schools, colleges and/or pros distinct from your general sports site, those sites would be considered part of your overall online entry for the APSE Web contest. If those sites are password protected, you will be required to supply a password for use by the judges. 

General contest guidelines used in judging:

Content (55 percent). Stories, videos, blogs, graphics, other multimedia items.
Design (35 percent). Look, feel, navigation.
Interactive elements (10 percent). Comments, polls, chats.

I urge all member sports editors to submit their entries, rather than rely on online staff.

The contest judging panels will select a top 10 and honorable mentions in each of the three traffic categories. Judging dates and judges will be determined by APSE first vice president Gerry Ahern, this year’s contest chairman.

If you have any questions, contact Ahern at gahern@yahoo-inc.com.