Deadline nears for 2012 Wilbur Awards entries

Religion Communicators Council to accept submissions until Feb. 6.

Entry deadline for the 2012 Wilbur Awards is fast approaching. Secular communicators have until Feb. 6 to submit work produced during 2011 for consideration in one of the oldest recognition programs in religion communication.

The Religion Communicators Council has presented Wilbur Awards annually since 1949. The awards honor excellence by individuals in secular media—print and online journalism, book publishing, broadcasting, and motion pictures—in communicating religious issues, values and themes. Winners in 2011 represented The Christian Science Monitor, St. Petersburg Times; The Courier-Journal of Louisville, Ky.; Vanity Fair, CBS News, Simon and Schuster Publishing House, motion picture producers; local radio and television stations; blogs and other electronic media authors; and book authors.

The 2012 awards are to be presented April 14 in Philadelphia during the council’s national convention. Winners receive a handcrafted stained-glass trophy.

The Rev. David W. Brown, vice president of sales and community outreach for United Healthcare Community Plan, Pennsylvania, is host for the award ceremony at the Philadelphia Airport Marriott Hotel. He is chairman of the board of advisers and former general manager of WURD radio, Philadelphia. A deacon on the ministerial staff at Camphor Memorial United Methodist Church in Philadelphia, Brown worked for two decades in advertising. He founded Brown Partners, one of the largest minority-owned ad agencies in the Northeast. He is past president of the Philadelphia Ad Club and Philadelphia chapter of the Public Relations Society of America. The Philadelphia Public Relations Association inducted him into its hall of fame in 2007.

Secular communicators may enter work in eight categories. Juries of media professionals coordinated by RCC members across the country evaluate submissions on content, creativity, impact and excellence in communicating religious values. Entry details are available online.
The award is named for the late Marvin C. Wilbur, a pioneer in religious public relations, longtime council leader and former Presbyterian Church executive. The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) is underwriting the 2012 Wilbur Awards. Presbyterian mission activities seek to alleviate hunger, foster self-development, respond to disasters, build communities, preach the gospel, heal the sick and educate new generations for the future. Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, the denomination’s disaster relief and recovery ministry, provides impartial assistance to survivors of disasters—nationally and internationally—based on need without regard to religion, ethnicity, gender or political affiliation.

About the Religion Communicators Council:

The Religion Communicators Council is an interfaith association of more than 500 religion communicators working in print and electronic communication, advertising, and public relations. Members represent Bahá'í, Christian, Hindu, Jewish and Muslim faith communities. Founded in 1929, the council is the oldest public relations professional association in the United States.

Contact: Shirley Struchen, sstruchen@rcn.com or 212-870-2402.

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