The special project 28 days on the menstrual period is nominated for the García Márquez Innovation Award

28 Days, 28 stories to break taboos surrounding the period, the Verne multimedia special that sought to show menstruation in a new light, is among the three finalists for the García Márquez Journalism Award in the Innovation category. The Gabriel García Márquez Foundation for New Iberoamerican Journalism – FNPI – announced on September 20 the list of chosen finalists for the awards from among 1,714 projects. The other two nominees vying for the prize in the Innovation category are  Los desterrados del Chaco, published in El Surti (Paraguay), and  Balas Perdidas, published in Agence France-Presse (AFP) (Brazil).

28 Days seeks to break taboos surrounding the period through 28 stories that treat menstruation from a range of different perspectives and in a range of formats: from health to economics, and from sociology to humor. The project published a daily story over the course of 28 days in different formats and on different platforms: written articles, videos, illustrations, infographics, data journalism, newsletters, and so on. The project was also active on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

More than 30 people worked on the Verne special, including journalists, illustrators, video makers and editors, writers, web designers and graphic artists. Mari Luz Peinado coordinated the project, based on an original idea by​​ Lucía González, while design and layout was the responsibility of Ana Fernández and Nelly Natalí. Anabel Bueno was graphics editor.

As well as the articles brought together for the 28-day special, other transmedia pieces were published on social networks, such as “questions men ask about the period”, compiled via social media and answered in Instagram Stories.

Sixth edition of the Gabriel García Márquez Awards

The FNPI has organized the Gabriel García Márquez Awards since 2013 with the aim of "encouraging the pursuit of excellence, innovation and ethics in Iberoamerican journalism."

Winners are recognised across four categories (Text, Image, Coverage and Innovation) and there are three further special prizes. The nominees, announced on September 13, include: Fondos de Papel: Una base de datos sobre el dinero, crimen y política, published in Ojo Público (Peru); Coding Like A Girl, published in El Confidencial (Spain); Los desterrados del Chaco, published in El Surti (Paraguay); El Bus TV, published in El Bus TV (Venezuela); Plataforma Ayotzinapa, published in Forensic Architecture (UK); Chacinas nos presídios: Conheça as 123 histórias dos detentos mortos, published in Metrópoles (Brazil); Verificado 2018, published in Verificado 2018, AJ+ Español, Animal Político and a network of 90 associated organizations (Mexico); Balas Perdidas, published by Agencia France-Presse (AFP) (Brazil); and Agonía sobre rieles, published in La Nación (Costa Rica).

28 Days will compete for the prize against Los desterrados del Chaco and Balas Perdidas. The winners will be announced at the García Márquez Journalism Festival in Medellín, Colombia, on October 4. The category of Innovation recognises "the best contribution to the development of new types of media, content, languages ​​and ways of engaging with the audience", as FNPI explains on its website.

In the Text category, the nominees are: La revolución de las ovejas, published in El Faro (El Salvador); Son presos políticos, nosotros también, published in La vida de nos (Venezuela); Un niño manchado de petróleo, published in Revista 5W (Spain). In the Image category, the nominees are: El Naya: la ruta oculta de la cocaína, published in ¡PACIFISTA! (Colombia); Memoria verdad y justicia para las pibas, published in Revista Anfibia (Argentina); Un albergue en Ciudad de México para mujeres que fueron trabajadoras sexuales, published in The New York Times (USA). In the Coverage category, the nominees are: De migrantes a refugiados: el nuevo drama centroamericano, published in Univision and El Faro (USA – El Salvador); Estafa Maestra, published in Animal Político and Mexicanos Contra la Corrupción y la Impunidad (Mexico); Venezuela a la fuga, published in El Tiempo – Efecto Cocuyo (Colombia-Venezuela).

The award for excellence, one of the special prizes, is to go to the Spanish journalist Ignacio Escolar. With this award, announced on September 6, the FNPI seeks to  honor "the great talent he deploys as a journalist in all media and as a promoter of journalistic projects that redefine political journalism for the digital era."