The Selection Committee screens bids submitted by organizations worldwide wishing to host a World Olympiad. The committee reviews the proposals based on a rigorous evaluation of each applicant’s journalistic background, the originality of the proposal and its potential impact on the host nation and region.
The committee is composed of Washington Post senior reporters and editors, leadership from the Wilson Center and outside consultants. It selects the most promising applicants, whose work will help advance the journalism in a particular country or area of interest to the United States.
A key challenge is ensuring the diversity of committee members, including geographic, gender and employment sector representation. To address this issue, a variety of methods could be used in the selection process to identify and cultivate candidates. Ideally, interviewees are recruited from diverse pools of nominees, and committees should consider reserving a seat or two for less experienced candidates to support efforts to strengthen diversity over time.
To increase the chances of a fair and equitable outcome, prize selection committees should seek to limit the influence of social loafing during discussion. They should also share cumulative rankings only after the final decision has been made, and avoid showing individual evaluations of nominees. This will reduce the chances that individuals are influenced by the voting patterns of other committee members and by the perceived quid pro quo between selectors and nominees.
Lastly, committees should ensure that each of their members has a designated alternate who can be asked to stand in for them should they have a conflict of interest that requires them to leave the committee. The names of these alternates should be submitted for approval along with the committee member selections.
The selection committees should be encouraged to use a combination of methods for selecting nominees, including purposive and snowball sampling. This will help to maximize the number of high-quality interviewees. Interviews should be conducted in-person or via videoconferencing.
Finally, the Selection Committee should be reminded that the selection of the finalists for each prize is a critical decision. While the Selection Committee will make its best effort to select a fair and impartial winner, there is no guarantee that any candidate or group of candidates will be selected.
The Selection Committee will meet in the weeks leading up to Selection Sunday. The front runners for the first three team spots are expected to be 2013 National All Around Champion Simone Biles, Kyla Ross and McKayla Maroney. The fourth team spot is likely to be awarded to a bars or beam specialist to round out the squad.
This year, seven positions are available to be filled by the Athletes Committee through a process which is open to all International Member Federations. More comprehensive information about the election process and eligibility is available in the AC Election Rules. Interested candidates are encouraged to apply as soon as possible. The application deadline is May 31.