An opportunity for local students to step into the shoes of an editorial cartoonist and express an original idea or opinion about today’s pressing issues.

Submission deadline

Entries must be submitted no later than 11:59 p.m. on Friday, May 1st.

Who can enter

All Western New York and Rochester, NY students in grades 5-12 (no purchase necessary)

Number of entries accepted

Students may enter up to three cartoons – one in each of our three contest categories:

1. Open Concept
2. TR Site Informed Citizen Award
3. Local Perspective

Students are eligible to win prizes for each cartoon they submit.

Cartoon guidelines

1. Only original cartoons will be accepted. Any contest entry determined to be a copy, reproduction or variant of another artist’s work will be disqualified for plagiarism. It’s okay to study other cartoonists; it’s okay to express an opinion that others hold true; but it’s never okay to copy someone else’s work.
2. AI-generated cartoon entries will be disqualified and are not considered original work. AI engines and image generators use existing artwork and cartoons from the web (many of which are under copyright) to construct a cartoon-like digital image. This is akin to anonymous plagiarism.
3. Students may create their cartoons by hand or with digital tools.
4. Hand-drawn cartoons must be displayed on 8.5×11-inch white, unlined paper. Black ink is strongly recommended, but color entries are also accepted! Please avoid using a wide-tip marker for text or captions. Digitally created art should keep to an 8.5×11 format.
5. Do not include your contact information or sign your name directly on the cartoon.

Submission

Students may submit cartoons online by completing our digital entry form and uploading their cartoon. They must complete and submit our official entry form with each cartoon. Cartoons submitted without an entry form will not be considered. Cartoons will be accepted in a JPEG or PDF file format (JPEG preferred).

Judging criteria

The Buffalo News judges based on creativity, originality, simplicity, effective interpretation of the topic and correct spelling. All decisions are final!

Other things to consider

All submitted cartoons become the property of The Buffalo News and will not be returned.