MEDIA RELEASE
21 August 2012
Straight talkers to be praised in 2012 WriteMark Plain English Awards
There’s just one month left to enter the 2012 WriteMark New Zealand Plain English Awards. The annual Awards honour the
organisations and people who are trying to make the world a better place by banishing jargon and gobbledygook.
With consumers increasingly demanding clear communication, the Awards celebrate the efforts of government and business
organisations that have made a commitment to plain English.
The public can also get involved by nominating in one of the People’s Choice categories. The Best Plain English
Communication category recognises a document or website that exemplifies plain English. And because a bit of adverse
publicity can inspire change too, the Worst ‘Brainstrain’ Award invites people to ‘dob in’ their most confusing,
jargon-filled document or website.
This year sees the addition of the Best Plain English Turnaround Award where previous nominees for the “Brainstrain’
Award can redeem themselves.
The award categories are:
Plain English Champion
· Best Organisation
· Best Individual or Team
Best Plain English Document
· Public Sector
· Private Sector
Best Plain English Website
· Public Sector
· Private Sector
Best Plain English Sentence Transformation
Best Plain English Technical Communicator
Best Plain English Investor Document
People's Choice
· Best Plain English Communication
· Worst 'Brainstrain' Communication
Best Plain English Turnaround
Entries close on Friday 21 September and will be assessed by an international panel of plain English experts and
advocates.
The finalists in each of the award categories will also be recognised with an Award of Distinction. Winners will be
announced at an Awards ceremony in Wellington on 29 November.
For more information or to enter online, visit www.plainenglishawards.org.nz
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