Two brand new categories have been announced for this year’s O2 North West Media Awards which are open for entries from today.

Journalists are being invited to enter the annual awards, with a total of 22 different accolades up for grabs.

New awards include Magazine of the Year, celebrating the role of regional interest magazines, and there will also be a special O2 Stand Out Award to acknowledge outstanding achievement among individuals and teams.

This year’s awards are open to all publishers and broadcasters operating within and across the North West region as well as the counties of Shropshire, Staffordshire, Flintshire and Denbighshire.

As in previous years there is no entry fee for journalists to enter the awards, and winners will be announced at a ceremony in early November.

Deadline for entries is 10 August 2016, with work published or broadcast between 1 July 2015 and 1 July 2016 eligible for the individual and team categories.

Nicola Green, director of communications & reputation at O2, said: “We first launched these awards as a local event for journalists working in Cheshire.

“Almost a decade later the O2 Awards have grown significantly, enabling us to celebrate regional journalism across the North West and surrounding regions.

“The awards’ evenings are truly inspiring and showcase how local and regional journalists make a real difference to people’s lives.”

Journalists will be able to enter the following categories.  Entries should be sent to [email protected]

• News Reporter
• Specialist Reporter
• Feature Writer
• Best Website
• Specialist Publication
• TV Journalist
• Sports Journalist
• Young Journalist
• Images of the Year
• Radio Journalist
• Scoop
• On-line Media
• Daily Newspaper
• Weekly Newspaper
• Free Distribution Newspaper
• Team of the Year (Print)
• Team of the Year (Broadcast)
• Weekly Newspaper Reporter
• Community Journalism
• Broadcast Presenter
• Magazine of the Year
• O2 Stand Out Award