Blog Contest: "A Virtual Island"

With the objective of encouraging the Cuban blogosphere and motivating those who use the Internet for expressing ideas, information and testimonies, the team of the magazine Convivencia and the editorial board of the site Desdecuba.com, announce the contest titled A Virtual Island.

The contest rules will be sent by email to all bloggers who write from Cuba. In they message they will be asked to confirm if they will to participate in the contest. Only those who respond affirmatively to our call will be considered nominees for one of the prizes described here.

Rules

1. Cuban bloggers currently living in the country are eligible to participate.
2. The blogs submitted can participate in other contests at the same time.
3. Blogs can be submitted regardless of the date they were begun.
4. Blogs on diverse themes will be considered, including personal, informative, news, computers, tourism, etc.
5. Each contestant can enter the number of blogs they desire.
6. The blogs in the competition must be signed with one’s own name.
7. This call is in effect from today, December 19, 2008, until August 30 2009, when the final deliberations of the jury will begin.
8. The results of this contest will be announced on September 9, 2009, through the digital media involved in the event.
9. The decision of the jury is final. Any category included in the competition can be canceled if the jury decides to do so.
10. Honorable mentions may be awarded if the jury decides to do so.
11. The members of the jury are excluded from participating in the contest.
12. Participation in the contest requires conformity with these rules.

Prize categories

• Best blog, Jury Award
• Best Blog, by public vote
• Best Blog Design
• Best Blog, Informative and Newsworthy
• Prize awarded by on-line voting to best commentator who visit Cuban blogs
• Special Prize Awarded by the site 233 grados

During the course of this contest different news institutions related to Internet journalist may offer a special prize under the criteria of their choice.

The jury is composed of:

• Enrique Del Risco, blogger de enrisco
• Reinaldo Escobar, blogger de Desde aquí
• Ernesto Hernández Busto, blogger de Penúltimos Días
• Yoani Sánchez, blogger de Generación Y
• Virgilio Toledo, diseñador de la revista Convivencia
• Dagoberto Valdés, director de la revista Convivencia

The Jury Prize will be a Laptop that will facilitate the work of the blogger. The prizes for the other categories will be announced on March 1, 2009, along with the final list of contestants. Starting on that day, on-line voting will begin for readers to select which they consider to be the best blogs.