Best of blogs 2012 - vote for your favorite blog!

The Deutsche Welle's eighth annual international blog award – the BOBs – begins on February 13. This year the spotlight is on culture and education. Internet users around the world have until March 13 to submit websites in six categories and 11 languages to the Deutsche Welle's annual international weblog award. All the information on how to take part is at www.thebobs.com. In 2012, the Special Topic Award will honor sites that focus on culture and education, which are also the themes for this year's Deutsche Welle Global Media Forum at the end of June in Bonn, Germany. DW will highlight blogs, portals, video channels and online projects that examine the right to education and intercultural dialogue. The best social activism campaign makes its second appearance at the BOBs, and the Reporters Without Borders award will once again honor bloggers who take strong public stance for freedom of expression, democracy and human rights. The BOBs will also call attention to the best overall blogs written in the contest's 11 languages. Since its inception, Deutsche Welle's blog awards established themselves as the premier international and multilingual weblog contest, and the BOBs remain the only competition conducted across the Internet in 11 languages. "The prize should lend support to the people who despite the constraints and intimidation they have to deal with continue to use the Internet to promote freedom of speech and free and open access to education around the world," said Editor in Chief Ute Schaeffer. "The Internet offers an abundance of ways to make education accessible and to promote dialogue." Integrating social networks To make the contest as accessible as possible, Internet users can register their submissions – and votes – using a number of social networks. In addition to Facebook, Twitter and OpenID, users of the Chinese network Sina Weibo and Russia's VKontakte can use their accounts to make suggestions to the BOBs. The BOBs international jury this year includes renowned photographer and professor Shahidul Alam of Bangladesh, who has received numerous awards for his work. He is also a founding member of the Internet-based Learn Foundation, which offers online training for people living in rural areas. Well-regarded bloggers Alexander Plushev of Russia and Isaac Mao of China will once again serve on the jury panel where they will be joined by BOBs newcomers South African Steve Vosloo and Germany's Patricia Cammarata. Jury and User awards will be given out in the following six main categories: - Best Blog - Best Use of Technology for Social Good - Best Social Activism Campaign - Reporters Without Borders Award - Special Topic Award: Culture and Education - Best Video Channel User prizes will be awarded in the 11 language categories: - Best Blog / Arabic - Best Blog / Bengali - Best Blog / Chinese - Best Blog / English - Best Blog / French - Best Blog / German - Best Blog / Indonesian - Best Blog / Persian - Best Blog / Portuguese - Best Blog / Russian - Best Blog / Spanish Dates to remember -** Blogs, websites, projects and initiatives can be submitted to the BOBs until March 13. Then the jury will decide on finalists in all 17 categories. -** From April 2 to May 2 it will be up to members of the public to cast their ballots in an online vote for the sites they find most impressive. -** On April 30 a selection of jury members will meet in Berlin for a press conference on the status of blogs and social media in their countries. -** On May 1 jury members will convene to decide on the winners of the 2012 BOBs Jury Award in the six multilingual categories. -** All winners will be announced on May 2. -** Jury Award winners will receive their prizes at an award ceremony on June 26 in Bonn, Germany, as part of the Deutsche Welle Global Media Forum, a three-day conference focusing on "Culture, Education and Media: Shaping a sustainable world." The BOBs' partners Reporters Without Borders and the re:publica conference are this year's premium partners. Media partners are: Global Voices Online, Jetzt.de, Arabic Media Internet Network, Somewhere in…, Bdnews.com, iSUN TV, Categorynet, TV5 Monde, Gooya, Terra and Lenta.ru. Facebook Twitter