July 29, 2008
The deadline has passed, and the contest is now closed. We'll announce the winner soon!

Here are the rules and other info you need to know in order to create and submit your entry in the This American Life T-Shirt Design Contest, in which you could win $1000 and have your design worn by TAL fans across the country.

Read all of the rules very carefully, as failure to follow them could disqualify the gorgeous design that you slaved over. Once you complete your design, upload it using the form at the bottom of this page. We can’t wait to see what you come up with.

Design Guidelines

• Your design can be inspired by This American Life in general, or maybe an iconic story or episode.

• Your design should include the words “This American Life.” Best not to have other words, though that’s not a hard and fast rule.

• The design could just be typographical in nature. So you type designers, go nuts.

• The shirt should be something that someone would want to wear even if they don’t know the show. In short, universally esthetically pleasing. Easy, sright?

• It should be inspired by the TAL radio show, not the TV show.

• Do not include existing TAL logos. If you want to include a logo of your own design, great.

• We don’t normally use Ira’s image to promote the radio show. It’s not inconceivable that we would like a design with Ira in it, but honestly, it’s pretty unlikely.

• Your design can only be on the front of the shirt.

• You may submit up to three designs, but they must be submitted as separate entries.

• Your design must be wholly original. By submitting a design you are guaranteeing that you hold rights to everything in it, and that it does not contain any copyright material. This is really important. It will keep you from being sued.

Design Specifications

• It’s best if you create your design in Photoshop or Illustrator or another professional design program. If you use another means to make your design, you must be prepared to provide print-ready files of the design should you win. But your submission will be a PDF.

• Your design should contain a maximum of four (4) colors (plus the shirt color).

• Please use the Photoshop or Illustrator T-Shirt templates here: Template.psd | Template.ai

• Your design can only be on the FRONT of the shirt, and must fit within the printable area shown on the templates. It is a 10” wide x 13” high rectangular area.

• You must choose one of the t-shirt fabric colors on the templates. If a design could work on more than one shirt color, please indicate that. You may also view the shirt color options here.

• Your submission should be a PDF file no larger than 5MB. If you win we will ask you for the high resolution files.

Submission Agreement

• You must be 18 years or older to submit. If you’re younger you can still make a design, but it must be submitted on your behalf by a parent or guardian.

• Any submitted design becomes the property of This American Life/Chicago Public Radio. We have to do that to protect ourselves legally.

• This American Life/Chicago Public Radio will have all rights to the winning design. By submitting you agree that if your design wins, it can be used by This American Life/Chicago Public Radio on a T-Shirt and other promotional items.

• The winner will receive a prize of $1000. (Yeah!)

• We reserve the right to make adjustments to the winning design.

• You must submit your design by midnight Monday July 28th 2008.

• Entries will be judged by the staff of This American Life.

• These and other rules are elaborated in the legal agreement below.

• By submitting you are agreeing to all contest rules.

THIS AMERICAN LIFE T-SHIRT DESIGN CONTEST OFFICIAL CONTEST RULES NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. THE CONTEST IS VOID OUTSIDE OF THE 50 UNITED STATES, THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA AND WHERE PROHIBITED OR RESTRICTED BY LAW. 1. ENTRY: This Contest will be conducted exclusively on the Internet and provides contestants (each an "Entrant") with the opportunity to submit a graphic design (“Entry Design”) which will be judged and eligible for the Prize described below subject to the terms and conditions herein. To participate, log on to www.thisamericanlife.org ("Website") during the period commencing at 12:01:00 A.M. Eastern Time ("ET") on June 30, 2008 and ending at 11:59:59 P.M. ET on July 28, 2008 ("Entry Term") and click on the update titled “T-Shirt Design Contest Details”, which will take you to the Contest page. Any attempted form of entry other than as described herein is void. Entry into the Contest may only be made during the Entry Term. To enter, Entrant must first carefully read, review and complete all of the required fields of the Official Contest Entry Form ("Entry Form") including Entrant’s first name, last name, complete home address, and e-mail address. If Entrant is under the age of legal majority in his or her state of resident, the Entrant’s parent or guardian must complete and submit the Entry Form and Entry Design. Incomplete Entry Forms, including but not limited to those entries that do not meet the requirements herein, will not be eligible for judging. All Entry Designs must be submitted as PDF files not to exceed 5MB in size. Individuals may submit up to three Entry Designs and must complete a separate Entry Form for each Entry Design. Individuals with disabilities should contact Seth Lind at seth@thislife.org if assistance with submitting an Entry Design is needed. By entering the Contest, Entrant acknowledges, agrees and understands that the Entry Design, and all other entry materials will become the property of WBEZ Alliance, Inc. (“WBEZ”)/This American Life. By participating in the Contest, each Entrant unconditionally accepts and agrees to comply with and abide by these Official Rules and the decision of WBEZ/This American Life which shall be final and binding in all respects. Each Entrant represents and warrants that each Entry Design is: (a) wholly original; (b) does not incorporate or include any material that would require the consent of any third party; and (c) does not violate any copyright, trademark, publicity right, privacy right, or any other right of any third party. By creating and submitting an Entry Design in the Contest, each Entrant hereby irrevocably grants, transfers, sells, assigns and conveys to WBEZ/This American Life, and each of its respective successors and assigns, all present and future right, title and interest of every kind and nature whatsoever, including, without limitation, all copyrights, and all rights incidental, subsidiary, ancillary or allied thereto (including, without limitation, all derivative rights), in and to the Entry Design for exploitation throughout the world, in perpetuity, by means of any and all media and devices whether now known or hereafter devised (including the right to publish and display the Entry Design for purposes of advertising, publicity and/or trade, in whole or in part). WBEZ/This American Life shall have the right, in its sole discretion, to edit, composite, scan, duplicate, or alter the Entry Design for any purpose which it deems necessary or desirable, without the need for any further compensation, and/or permission. Entrant irrevocably waives any and all moral rights in any submitted Entry Design. Once submitted, Entry Designs become the exclusive property of WBEZ/This American Life and will not be acknowledged or returned. Entry Designs which WBEZ/This American Life determines are not reasonably pertinent to the subject matter of the Contest, or are otherwise in violation of these Official Rules will be disqualified. WBEZ/This American Life reserves the right to disqualify any Entry Design for any reason, in their sole and absolute discretion. WBEZ/This American Life shall have no obligation (express or implied) to use any Entry Design or to otherwise exploit any Entry Design or, if commenced, to continue the distribution or exploitation thereof, and WBEZ/This American Life may at any time abandon the use of the any Entry Design for any reason, with or without legal justification or excuse, and Entrants shall not be entitled to any damages or other relief by reason thereof. The use of any Entry Design by WBEZ/This American Life on T-Shirts or other promotional materials will be determined by WBEZ/This American Life in its sole discretion. 2. LIMITATIONS: All Submissions must be received by 11:59:59 P.M. ET on July 28, 2008. Entry Designs submitted by any method other than set forth above in Section 1 are void. Any use of automated or programmed methods of effecting entry is prohibited. Contest entry is open only to Entrants who are legal residents of, and physically located within, the 50 states or D.C. ("Territory") as of date of entry, and not employees of WBEZ/This American Life, their respective parent companies, subsidiaries, affiliates or partnerships, or the advertising, promotional or fulfillment agencies, or any of their respective officers or directors, or any persons or entities directly associated with the Contest, or any members of the households or immediate families of such persons. WBEZ/This American Life is not responsible for any Entry Designs that are altered, defective, delayed, deleted, destroyed, fraudulent, improperly accessed, inaccurate, incomplete, interrupted, invalid, late, lost, misrouted, multiple, non-delivered, stolen, tampered with, unauthorized or unintelligible; or for lost, interrupted or unavailable network, server or other connections; miscommunications; failed phone, computer hardware or software or telephone transmissions; technical failures; unauthorized human intervention; traffic congestion; garbled or jumbled transmissions; undeliverable e-mails resulting from any form of active or passive e-mail filtering; insufficient space in Entrant’s e-mail account to receive e-mail; or other errors of any kind, whether due to electronic, mechanical or human error or other causes, even if caused by the negligence of the WBEZ/This American Life. This Contest is subject to all applicable federal, state, local and municipal laws and regulations. 3. PRIZE: One (1) Winner will be selected to win $1000 and have the opportunity to have his or her Entry Design used on a T-Shirt or other premium item (“the Prize”). The Prize is not assignable or transferable. All taxes and reporting consequences thereof associated with the receipt of the Prize are solely the responsibility of the Winner who will receive an IRS Form 1099 reflecting the final actual value of the Prize. Winners may be required to supply a Social Security or taxpayer ID number prior to the award of the Prize. To the extent the Prize is to be delivered to the Winner, the Prize will only be delivered to an address in the United States. 4. SELECTION OF WINNERS: All Entry Designs will be screened and those that comply with these rules will be judged by the staff of This American Life. 5. PRIZE WINNER NOTIFICATION: The Winner is subject to verification, including without limitation, verification of eligibility, compliance with these Official Rules and execution of the Agreement (described below). All Entrants agree to be bound by these Official Rules and the decision of the Judges, whose decisions are final and binding. The Winner will be notified by telephone, email, or express mail to the phone number, email or address listed as part of the entry process on or about August 1, 2008. The Winner must comply with all terms and conditions set forth in these Official Rules, and winning is contingent upon fulfilling all such requirements. 6. CONDITIONS: By participating, Entrants agree to release and hold harmless WBEZ/This American Life from any and all liability, for loss, harm, damage, claim, injury, cost or expense whatsoever which may occur as a result of participating in the Contest. The Winner’s acceptance of the Prize constitutes the grant of an unconditional right to use the winning Entry Design, the Winner’s likeness, photograph, biographical and Prize information and/or statements about the promotion for any publicity, advertising and promotional purposes without additional compensation, except where prohibited by law. In its sole discretion, WBEZ/This American Life has the right to cancel, terminate or suspend the Contest; and in such event, to select from among all eligible Entry Designs received up to such time of cancellation, termination or suspension, or to cancel the Contest and not award any Prize. In the event that any Entrant attempts to defraud or in any manner tamper with this Contest, Entrant will be ineligible for the Prize. In the event that any dispute arises regarding the meaning or interpretation of these Official Rules, it is agreed that the dispute shall be resolved by applying the laws of the State of Illinois within the Federal or state courts located in Cook County Illinois. CAUTION: WBEZ/THIS AMERICAN LIFE RESERVES THE RIGHT IN ITS SOLE DISCRETION TO DISQUALIFY ANY ENTRANT WHO IS FOUND TO BE TAMPERING WITH THE ENTRY PROCESS OR THE OPERATION OF THE CONTEST OR THE WEBSITE, TO BE ACTING IN VIOLATION OF THESE OFFICIAL RULES, OR TO BE ACTING IN AN UNSPORTSMAN-LIKE OR DISRUPTIVE MANNER, OR WITH THE INTENT TO DISRUPT OR UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THE CONTEST, OR TO ANNOY, ABUSE, THREATEN OR HARASS ANY OTHER PERSON, AND SPONSOR RESERVES THE RIGHT TO SEEK DAMAGES AND OTHER REMEDIES FROM ANY SUCH PERSON TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW. ANY ATTEMPT BY AN ENTRANT TO DELIBERATELY DAMAGE ANY WEB SITE OR UNDERMINE THE LEGITIMATE OPERATION OF THE CONTEST MAY BE A VIOLATION OF CRIMINAL AND CIVIL LAWS AND SHOULD SUCH AN ATTEMPT BE MADE, SPONSORS RESERVES THE RIGHT TO SEEK DAMAGES FROM ANY SUCH PERSON TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW. 7. USE OF DATA: All Entry Designs will be treated as non-confidential. All personal information submitted as part of the Contest will be subject to WBEZ/This American Life’s privacy policies as set forth at http://www.wbez.org/Privacy_Policy.aspx. By participating in the Contest, Entrants agree to collection and usage of their personal information and acknowledge that they have read and accepted WBEZ/This American Life’s privacy policy. 8. ASSIGNMENT AGREEMENT ("AGREEMENT"): As a condition to receiving the Prize, Winner (parent or legal guardian if Winner is under the age of majority in his or her state of residence) will be required to execute an Agreement or alternate winner may be chosen. The Agreement will set forth the responsibilities and obligations of the Winner and require Winner to assign all right, title, and interest in and to the winning Entry Design to WBEZ/This American Life. The Agreement also may require, among other things, that winner permit the use of his/her name, likenesses or identifying information for promotional, publicity or advertising purposes in any media including print, TV, radio and online media, without time or geographic limitations. Notwithstanding any of the above, WBEZ/This American Life’s sole obligation under the Agreement is to award the Prize to the Winner. WBEZ/This American Life will have no obligation to use the Winner’s Design or name or likeness in any manner whatsoever. In the event the Winner fails to execute the Agreement by a date specified by WBEZ/This American Life, the Winner will forfeit the entire Prize and an alternate winner may be selected from among the other Entry Designs. 9. NATURE OF RELATIONSHIP/WAIVER OF EQUITABLE RELIEF: Each Entrant hereby acknowledges and agrees that the relationship between the Entrant and WBEZ/This American Life is not a confidential, fiduciary, or other special relationship. Each Entrant understands and acknowledges that WBEZ/This American Life has wide access to ideas, stories, designs, and other literary materials, and that new ideas are constantly being submitted to it or being developed by its own employees. Each Entrant also acknowledges that many designs, ideas, or stories may be competitive with, similar or identical to the Entry Design. Each Entrant acknowledges and agrees that such Entrant will not be entitled to any compensation as a result of WBEZ/This American Life’s use of any such similar or identical material that has or may come to WBEZ/This American Life from other sources. Finally, each Entrant acknowledges that, with respect to any claim by Entrant relating to or arising out of WBEZ/This American Life’s actual or alleged use of any Entry Design or other material submitted in connection with the Contest, the damage, if any, thereby caused to the applicable Entrant will not be irreparable or otherwise sufficient to entitle such Entrant to seek injunctive or other equitable relief or in any way enjoin the production, distribution, exhibition or other exploitation of any Entry Design and Entrant’s rights and remedies in any such event shall be strictly limited to the right to recover damages, if any, in an action at law. 10. DATES & DEADLINES/ANTICIPATED NUMBER OF CONTESTANTS: Because of the unique nature and scope of the Contest, WBEZ/This American Life reserve the right, in addition to those other rights reserved herein, to modify any date(s) or deadline(s) set forth in these Official Rules or otherwise governing the Contest. WBEZ/This American Life cannot accurately predict the number of Entrants who will participate in the Contest. Further, WBEZ/This American Life reserves the right to not choose a winner or award any Prize if it does not receive a sufficient number of eligible and qualified Entry Designs. 11. WINNER'S NAME: To obtain copy of any legally-required Winners list, send a self-addressed stamped envelope postmarked by 9/1/2008 to: This American Life attn: Seth Lind 153 West 27th Street Suite 1104 New York NY 10001. 12. SPONSOR: The Sponsor of this Contest is WBEZ Alliance, Inc., 848 East Grand Avenue, Chicago, Illinois 60611. ©2008 WBEZ Alliance, Inc. This American Life ® is a registered trademark of WBEZ Alliance, Inc. and Ira Glass.