SABEW to honor "Best of the Best"

The Society of American Business Editors and Writers will add a new category to its annual “Best in Business” awards to honor exceptional business journalism.

The new Best of the Best awards, which will be given for the first time at the 2009 spring conference in Denver, are designed to reward the very best work entered in SABEW’s Best in Business contest.

After Best in Business judging is completed, two uber-judging panels (one for General Excellence, one for all other categories) will get all the winning entries. The judging panels will have wide discretion in picking Best of the Best winners.

In the Best of the Best judging process, Best in Business award winners will not be compared to one another.

Rather, they will be measured against the Best of the Best judges’ own definition of excellence in whatever category of business journalism they are entered. Only those that rise above the general level of excellence shown in the larger group of all Best in Business contest winners will be honored as Best of the Best.

Judges will honor only the very best work, and will not feel obligated to hand out any Best of the Best awards if they feel none is warranted.

The Best of the Best winners will be announced at the annual Best in Business ceremony during the spring conference. All other winners will be announced in March, as always.