Submissions for the 2009 Martha Gellhorn prize are now open to journalists publishing in English. The prize will be awarded to a journalist whose work has penetrated the established version of events and told an unpalatable truth, validated by powerful facts, that exposes establishment propaganda, or ‘official drivel’, as Martha Gellhorn called it.

A minimum of two long articles (1500 words or more) and a maximum of three articles of any length may be submitted, provided that they appeared in print or a reputable internet publication between 31 January 2009 and 31 January 2010.

Entrants must include six copies of each piece submitted. The closing date for 2009 submissions is 31 March 2010. Entries should be sent to:

  
 
 
 
 
   
   
   
   
   
The Martha Gellhorn Prize
 
Crosscombe
  
 
Town’s Lane
 
Loddiswell
 
Devon TQ7 4QY
 
The award is made by the trustees of the Martha Gellhorn Prize: James Fox, Jeremy Harding, John Hatt, Cynthia Kee, Sandy and Shirlee Matthews and John Pilger.

The 2009 winner will receive £5000. The 2008 award was won by Ian Cobain of The Guardian. The 2007 award was shared by Dahr Jamail, an independent journalist, and Mohammed Omer (Washington Report on Middle East Affairs). Previous winners include Hala Jaber (Sunday Times), Michael Tierney (Glasgow Herald), Robert Fisk (The Independent), Ghaith Abdul Ahad (The Guardian), Patrick Cockburn (The Independent), Chris McGreal (The Guardian), Geoffrey Lean (The Independent) and Nick Davies (The Guardian).