The Toronto Star was next with five.

Single awards went to Getty Images, The Hamilton Spectator, La Presse of Montreal, Le Journal de Montréal, London Free Press, Reuters, St. John’s Telegram, Sarnia Observer, and Vancouver Province.

The winners and runners-up were announced at an awards ceremony in Toronto on April 27, 2012. Winners received cheques for $1,000 and a certificate of award. Runners-up received citations of merit.

This is the 23rd year for the NNAs under a Board of Governors which includes editors, publishers and the public from across Canada as well as representatives from the Toronto Press Club. Previous to 1989, the NNAs had been sponsored by the Toronto Press Club. The awards are administered from the National Newspaper Awards office in Toronto.

The National Newspaper Awards were founded by The Toronto Press Club in 1949.
Highlights:
*The Globe and Mail’s Stephanie Nolen, Grant Robertson and Mark MacKinnon earned two NNAs each; one of MacKinnon’s NNAs was shared with Andy Hoffman in Business Reporting.
* The Province in Vancouver has won its second NNA for Special Project. It has been a finalist for three years in a row.

The nominees:
* Multimedia Feature: Winner: The Toronto Star for a revelation of the ongoing despair and famine in Somalia; Runners-up: the Halifax Chronicle-Herald for a multimedia study of racism in Nova Scotia; The Globe and Mail for an examination of the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
* News Feature Photography: Winner: Chris Wattie, Reuters, for a photo of Jack Layton’s casket in the foreground of a sea of faces; Runners-up: John Lehmann, The Globe and Mail, for a photo of a 13-person canoe about to leave on an expedition visiting remote native villages between Tofino and Port Alberni; Tara Walton, Toronto Star, for a photo of an elderly Alzheimer’s patient who had been sexually assaulted.
* Beat Reporting: Winner: Susan Pigg, Toronto Star, for stories on aging; Runners-up: Jim Bronskill, The Canadian Press, for his public security beat;. Mary Agnes Welch, Winnipeg Free Press, for her public policy beat.
* Explanatory Work: Winner: Grant Robertson of The Globe and Mail for the story behind Canada’s currency overhaul; Runners-up: Carolyn Abraham of The Globe and Mail on the facts and mythology of sperm count research; Mary Ormsby of the Toronto Star on the mechanics and spiritual dimensions of figure skating.
* Politics: Winner: Daniel Leblanc of The Globe and Mail for coverage of corruption and political collusion in the Quebec construction industry; Runners-up: Don Butler of the Ottawa Citizen for stories of how Canada grants asylum to refugees; Sheila Prattof the Edmonton Journal for an investigation of the climate of fear and intimidation in Alberta’s public life.
* Short Features: Winner: Daniel Dale, Toronto Star, for a story of guilt associated with seeing a toonie that someone had dropped on a subway car floor; Runners-up: Kate Hammer of The Globe and Mail for story of a kindergarten class in a B.C. seniors’ home; Mike Strobel, Toronto Sun, for story of disabled youth at a swimming meet.
* Local Reporting: Winner: Shawn Jeffords of the Sarnia Observer for stories of prescription pill abuse in the community; Runners-up: Sara Ross, Nathan Taylor and Teviah Moro of the Orillia Packet and Times for coverage of cronyism and lack of transparency in the hiring of a city manager; Paul Schliesmann of the Kingston Whig-Standard for an examination of recycling practices in the region; Mike Whitehouse of the Sudbury Star for stories of a sex scandal and the squandering of taxpayers’ money.
* Presentation: Winner:The team of Catherine Farley, Brian Hughes, Noor Javed, Joe Rubin, Nuri Ducassi, Toronto Star; Runners-up: Rachel Hotte, Jacques-Olivier Bras, La Presse, Montréal; Jocelyne Potelle, La Presse, Montréal
* Special Project: Winner: The Province of Vancouver for project on elder abuse; Runners-up: The Gazette of Montreal for a series on Quebec’s cult of government and institutional secrecy; National Post for a project on Canada’s decade-long war in Afghanistan; Waterloo Region Record for a multi-faceted study of public transportation in the region.
* Sports Photography: Winner: Derek Ruttan of the London Free Press for a hurdles runner outdistancing his opponents at a high school meet. Runners-up: Mark Blinch, Reuters, for a photo of a U.S. hurdles runner falling during the handoff of the baton; Benoît Gariépy of Le Journal de Québec for a photo of a disconsolate hockey player at the famed Quebec Peewee Tournament;
* Business: Winner: Andy Hoffman and Mark MacKinnon of The Globe and Mail for a series on Sino-Forest Corp.; Runners-up: Sheldon Alberts of Postmedia News for stories of the Keystone XL Pipeline controversy; Chuck Howitt of the Waterloo Region Record on the demutualization of an insurance company; and Barrie McKenna, The Globe and Mail, for an examination of the federal government’s research and development tax program.
* Columns: Winner: Susan Clairmont, Hamilton Spectator; Runners-up: Barrie McKenna, The Globe and Mail; Eric Reguly, The Globe and Mail.
* Investigations: Winner: Moira Welsh, Jesse McLean, Andrew Bailey of the Toronto Star for an investigation into abuse in Ontario’s long-term care homes. Runners-up: Daniel Leblanc of The Globe and Mail for corruption at the Canada Revenue Agency offices in Montreal; Mike De Souza of Postmedia News for an investigation into partisan research carried out at a university to lobby against the Kyoto Protocol and peer-reviewed science on climate change;.
* Arts and Entertainment: Winner: Stephanie Nolen, The Globe and Mail, for features on Deepa Mehta and her challenges of making a movie of Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children; Runners-up: Nick Patch, The Canadian Press, for features that included the 60th anniversary of the first rock and roll song; Johanna Schneller, The Globe and Mail, for articles that included the new types of roles women are portraying in film.
* Sports: Winner: Grant Robertson, The Globe and Mail, for a feature on a 13-year-old Formula One driving prodigy from Montreal; Runners-up: Josh Brown, Waterloo Region Record, for a feature on a former football player who had hit rock bottom; Ken Dryden, The Globe and Mail, for an essay on head injuries and concussions; Randy Turner, Winnipeg Free Press, for a feature about the ultimately doomed hope of hockey player Rick Rypien to join the reborn Winnipeg Jets.
* Feature Photography: Winner: Ivanoh Demers, La Presse in Montreal, for a photo of Jack Layton backstage during an election stop in Quebec; Runners-up: Rafal Gerszak of The Globe and Mail for a photo of a former soldier diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD); Mathew McCarthy of the Waterloo Region Record for photo of a woman with an umbrella seen through rain droplets on a car window.
* International Reporting: Winner: Stephanie Nolen of The Globe and Mail for a portrait of young girls attending a ground-breaking school run by a quietly radical nun; Runners-up: Graeme Smith, The Globe and Mail, for coverage of the conflict in Libya; Jennifer Wells of the Toronto Star for her profile of modern-day serfs who mine for gold at the top of the world.
* Editorials: Winner: Russell Wangersky, St. John’s (NL) Telegram. Runners-up: André Pratte of La Presse in Montreal; John Roe of the Waterloo Region Record;.
* Editorial Cartooning: Winner: Marc Beaudet, Le Journal de Montréal; Runners-up: Brian Gable,The Globe and Mail; Bruce MacKinnon, Halifax Chronicle Herald.
* Long Features: Winner: Patrick White of The Globe and Mail for an anniversary piece on the founding of Nunavut. Runners-up: Erin Anderssen of The Globe and Mail for a feature on being a mother in the 21st century; Ian Brown, The Globe and Mail, for an exploration of the ethical controversy sparked by new developments in pre natal testing;
* News Photography: Winner: Rich Lam of Getty Images for a photo of a couple kissing during the Vancouver Stanley Cup riots; Runners-up:Joe Bryksa of the Winnipeg Free Press for a photo of a police takedown; Steve Russell of the Toronto Star of a photo of Jack Layton just after the election results were known.
* Breaking News: Winner: Mark MacKinnonof The Globe and Mail for coverage of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. Runners-up: Edmonton Journal team for coverage of the Slave Lake fires; The Globe and Mail team for stories of a murder-suicide in Alberta; London Free Press team for stories of a tornado in nearby Goderich.

Marc Beaudet of Le Journal de Montreal doesn’t fail to address matters that have a world impact. He portrayed Dominique Strauss-Kahn showing his gratitude to Blind Justice for his freedom. Jack Layton is the fighter heading off toward the white light. Saint Peter at the Pearly Gates thanks Steve Jobs for getting his new Apple iPad. In another cartoon, Moammar Gadhafi shows up as a celebrity arriving in Hell. A fifth imagines Prime Minister Stephen Harper dreaming of smooching with Queen Elizabeth as one of Benetton’s “unhate” advertising images. Beaudet won this award in 2006.

Another four NNA categories are moving to online submissions and judging, including an experiment in blind judging for the Short Features category.

The Board of Governors recently approved the addition of Short Features, Columns, Editorials and Local Reporting (for newspapers under 30,000 average daily circulation) to its stable of categories that are submitted online. This brings to 11 the number of online categories: Spot News Photo, Feature Photo, News Feature Photo, Sports Photo, Editorial Cartooning, Explanatory Work, Multi-media Feature and the four new ones.

Short Features will be the first category subject to blind judging. The online entry process will include special procedures that will hide certain information from the judges, such as the author’s name and affiliation. Governors discussed expanding blind judging to more categories, but will research the process before any such expansion.

Local Reporting entrants may submit up to five pieces plus video and other multi-media elements. There will be no charge for those entering in this category, similar to last year. Small market entries in the other 21 categories will have to pay the $25 registration fee.

“Entrants and judges will find that the process of submitting and judging online will be relatively simple. There will be instructions on how to do it,” said Ron Poling, the NNAs online entry and judging administrator. “It has worked very well so far. If there’s a glitch, we’re here to help you through.”

Board members recognized the concerns about moving even more categories online, notably the burden this may place on judges as a result of the volume of entries. There were no concerns expressed by the judges in Explanatory Work, the first significant text category to go online in 2010, but some of the NNAs’ 22 text entries have a large number of parts.

Categories that will be entered as usual this year are: Long Features, Special Project, Politics, Arts and Entertainment, Sports Writing, Business, Presentation, Investigations, Breaking News, International and Beats.

“The NNAs are committed to being the most relevant and prestigious journalism awards program in Canada,” added Scott White, chair of the Board of Governors. “These changes recognize the transformations taking place at daily newspapers beyond the good work being done with ink on newsprint. “

Gannon, a Canadian who hails from Timmins, has worked for AP since 1988 in Pakistan and Afghanistan, a period that spans the mysterious death of Pakistan dictator Zia-ul Haq, the withdrawal of Russian soldiers from Afghanistan, and the bitter Afghan civil war between Islamic factions. She was in Kabul when the Taliban regime took power and was the only western journalist allowed to return to Kabul by the Taliban in the weeks before their collapse in November 2001.

She has received two AP Managing Editors awards for her coverage of two of the hottest spots on the planet – Pakistan and Afghanistan.

She has received two honourary doctorates from Laurentian University in Sudbury and Nipissing University in North Bay. Her career in journalism included a stint as city editor of the Kelowna Daily Courier.

Gannon now lives in Pakistan with her husband and stepdaughter.

The NNA Governors’ award contains the following inscription: “Kathy Gannon of the Associated Press has covered Afghanistan longer than any other Canadian journalist. For more than two decades, her dispatches have told the world about the Soviet intervention, a civil war, the rise of the Taliban and the ongoing campaign by NATO troops. Throughout it all, she never stopped telling the story of the people of Afghanistan. For her insight, courage and dedication, the National Newspaper Awards recognizes Kathy Gannon with its Governors’ Award.”
The award was presented by NNA Governors Margo Goodhand of the Winnipeg Free Press and Alain Guilbert of Ottawa.

In her book, “I Is For Infidel, From Holy War to Holy Terror. 18 years Inside Afghanistan,” she asserts, almost casually, that Osama bin Laden may well be under the protection of the Pakistani military. Her book was published in 2006, five years before the events that led to Osama bin Laden’s demise.

The Toronto Star and La Presse of Montreal picked up three each.

The Gazette in Montreal, The Canadian Press, and The Hamilton Spectator earned two each
Single awards went to the Brandon Sun, Lethbridge Herald, Nanaimo Daily News, New Brunswick Telegraph-Journal, and The Vancouver Sun.

There were 72 finalists in the 22 categories out of more than 1,470 entries.

The winners and runners-up were announced at an awards ceremony at the Canadian War Museum in Ottawa . Winners received cheques for $1,000 and a certificate of award. Runners-up received citations of merit.

This is the 22nd year for the NNAs under a Board of Governors which includes editors, publishers and the public from across Canada as well as representatives from the Toronto Press Club. Previous to 1989, the NNAs had been sponsored by the Toronto Press Club. The awards are administered from the National Newspaper Awards office in Toronto.
The National Newspaper Awards were founded by The Toronto Press Club in 1949.

Highlights:
* Lucas Oleniuk of the Toronto Star has won his third award for photography.
* Brian Gable of The Globe and Mail took home his sixth NNA for editorial cartooning.
* Marty Klinkenberg of the New Brunswick Telegraph-Journal won his third NNA, twice in Arts and Entertainment and once in Sports.
* The Globe and Mail has won the newest award, Multimedia Feature, in both of the years it has existed.
* The Nanaimo Daily News has won its first-ever NNA.
* André Pratte of La Presse has won the editorial writing award in three of the past four years.
* Geoffrey York of The Globe and Mail won his second straight International Reporting award.
* Paul Chiasson of The Canadian Press has won his second NNA.
*The Hamilton Spectator won its second award for Special Project.
* Ian Martens of the Lethbridge Herald has picked up his second photo award.
* Jason Chu has won his second presentation award in a row. He was part of a winning team last year.

The winners and runners-up:
* Multimedia Feature: Winner: The Globe and Mail for a study of local efforts in Haiti to rebuild after the earthquake. Runners-up: The Canadian Press for an online feature on the victims and their families of those injured or killed in Afghanistan; the Toronto Star for a look at people waiting for organ transplants.
* News Feature Photography: Winner: Lucas Oleniuk, Toronto Star, for a photo of looters walking past a dead teenage Haitian girl still clutching her stolen mirrors after she was shot by police. Runners-up: Mark Blinch of Reuters for a photo of a protester at the G20 Toronto summit doing a handstand as a police car burns in the background; Lucas Oleniuk, Toronto Star, for a photo of opposition supporters leaping over burning tires during a protest of the outcome of the Haitian national elections.
* Beat Reporting: Winner: Charlie Fidelman, The Gazette, Montreal, for stories of secret practices revealed from her health beat. Runners-up: Murray Brewster, The Canadian Press, for stories from his defence beat from both Ottawa and Afghanistan; Sonja Puzic, Windsor Star, for stories from her health beat, notably at the troubled Hotel Dieu Hospital; Mary Agnes Welch, Winnipeg Free Press, for a variety of stories from her public policy beat.
* Explanatory Work: Winner: Jennifer Yang, Toronto Star, for a story of the rescue efforts for the 31 Chilean miners. Runners-up: Peggy Curran, The Gazette in Montreal, for a study of the future facing high school dropouts; Richard Johnson, National Post, for the barbaric practice of stoning in Iran;
* Politics: Winner: Jennifer Ditchburn and Heather Scoffield of The Canadian Press, for the federal government’s decision to eliminate the long-form census. Runners-up: Bruce Cheadle, The Canadian Press, for stories of the command-and-control tactics of the Harper government’s implementation of its economic stimulus plan; Kevin Dougherty of The Gazette in Montreal for coverage of the Canadian government’s cooperation with the United States to provide secure air travel; Jeff Outhit of the Waterloo Region Record for coverage of municipal politics.
* Short Features: Winner: Paul Benedetti of The Hamilton Spectator for a story of how his daughter learned to play Debussy’s Clair de Lune as a Christmas present in memory of her grandmother she never knew. Runners-up: Ingrid Peritz, The Globe and Mail, for a story of a heart-shaped book created and signed in Auschwitz by 19 young women as a birthday gift to a fellow prisoner; Oakland Ross, Toronto Star, for piece on an endangered tree that is responsible for the best-quality bows for string instruments.
* Local Reporting: Winner: Derek Spalding, Nanaimo Daily News, for getting behind the secrecy over a deadly C-difficile outbreak at a local hospital. Runners-up: News team, Belleville Intelligencer, for coverage of the Russell Williams crime spree; Tara Jeffrey, Sarnia Observer, for stories about a local epidemic in youth suicide; Gillian Slade, Medicine Hat News, for the bureaucratic failure in awarding a private company millions of dollars from handling disaster relief claims from the 2010 floods.
* Presentation: Winner: Jason Chiu, The Globe and Mail. Runners-up: Catherine Farley, Toronto Star; Yanick Nolet, La Presse, Montreal.
* Special Project: Winner: The Hamilton Spectator for a project on what it means to grow up poor in Hamilton. Runners-up: The Calgary Herald for an expose of job-related deaths in boom-time Alberta; the New Brunswick Telegraph-Journal a study of the 15 First Nations in New Brunswick; The Province in Vancouver for a stark snapshot of B.C’s children and the physical and mental health issues they face.
* Sports Photography: Winner: Paul Chiasson, The Canadian Press, for a picture of Sidney Crosby after he scored the gold medal winning goal in overtime. Runners-up: David Cooper, Toronto Star, for a shot of a jubilant Japanese goaltender in a Paralympics sledge hockey game victory over Canada; Rick Madonik, Toronto Star, for a picture of two Canadian women hockey players lying on the ice and celebrating their gold medal win with a beer and champagne.
* Business: Winner: Brenda Bouw, Boyd Erman, Andy Hoffman, Jacquie McNish and Eric Reguly, The Globe and Mail, for stories on BHP Billiton’s bid for Potash Corp. Runners-up: Tara Perkins and Grant Robertson, The Globe and Mail, for reportage on the effectiveness of the regulatory system to ensure life insurance money is paid out when people die; Jacquie McNish and Janet McFarland of The Globe and Mail for stories on women’s battle for equity in the workplace; Tamsin McMahon of the New Brunswick Telegraph-Journal for a story of a Florida criminal with extensive New Brunswick land connections.
* Columns: Winner: Peter McKnight, The Vancouver Sun. Runners-up: Rosie DiManno, Toronto Star; André Picard, The Globe and Mail.
* Investigations: Winner: André Noël, Michèle Ouimet and Francis Vailles, La Presse, for their reporting on the scandals surrounding the bankruptcy of the BCIA Security Agency in Montreal. Runners-up: David Bruser, Michele Henry and Andrew Bailey, Toronto Star, for a series of stories about police who break the law; Sandro Contenta, Jim Rankin and Antonia Zerbisias, Toronto Star, for a pre-trial study of Russell Williams and his escalating crimes from voyeurism to murder.
* Arts and Entertainment: Winner: Marty Klinkenberg, New Brunswick Telegraph-Journal, for his piece on the creative life of Molly Lamb Bobak, the first Canadian woman artist to be sent overseas during World War II to record Canada’s involvement. Runners-up: Robert Cushman, National Post, for his coverage of live theatre; Lois Legge of the Halifax Chronicle-Herald for an entry that included a story on Billy Downey, an influential proponent of black music and culture in Halifax.
* Sports: Winner: Réjean Tremblay, La Presse, for a piece about Joannie Rochette’s perseverance in winning a bronze in figure skating two days after her mother died of a heart attack. Runners-up: Bruce Arthur, National Post, for a feature about Toronto Maple Leaf general manager Brian Burke as he experienced the pain of losing his gay son Brendan following a car accident; Ian Brown, The Globe and Mail, for a story of Frederic Bilodeau, the disabled brother of gold medalist Alexandre Bilodeau and their intense bond; the late Tony Proudfoot, a Montreal Alouette defensive back, who incurred Lou Gehrig’s disease and wrote about his experiences for the Montreal Gazette in his dying days.
* Feature Photography: Winner: Tim Smith, Brandon Sun, for a photo of children playing tag on a pyramid of straw bales. Runners-up: Darryl Dyck, The Canadian Press, for a photo of an Olympic torchbearer carrying the Olympic flame through heavy fog in White Rock, B.C.; André Pichette, La Presse, Montreal, for a picture of a cyclist enjoying the rain.
* International Reporting: Winner: Geoffrey York, The Globe and Mail, for stories revealing the human faces and complex causes of maternal deaths in the developing world. Runners-up: Raveena Aulakh, Toronto Star, for stories detailing the exodus to the West of hundreds of young men from Punjab villages; David Graham, Toronto Star, for stories on gay men clandestinely escaping Iran;
* Editorials: Winner: André Pratte, La Presse, Montreal. Runners-up: Catherine Mitchell, Winnipeg Free Press; Paul Waters, The Gazette, Montreal.
* Editorial Cartooning: Winner: Brian Gable, The Globe and Mail. Runners-up: Serge Chapleau, La Presse Montreal; Terry Mosher (Aislin), The Gazette, Montreal.
* Long Features: Winner: Marion Scott, The Gazette in Montreal, for a first-anniversary story on the bullying endured by a young Quebecker who disappeared in February 2009 and has never been found. Runners-up: Sandro Contenta, Andrew Chung and Dale Anne Freed, Toronto Star, for a narrative on those who were on the last Air Canada flight to Haiti on one particular day after the earthquake struck; Melissa Martin, Winnipeg Free Press, for a feature on the disappearing language of the Métis people of Manitoba.
* News Photography: Winner: Ian Martens, Lethbridge Herald, for a photo of a CF-18 fighter pilot ejecting from his doomed aircraft during a pre-airshow practice flight. Runners-up: Lucas Oleniuk, Toronto Star, for a photo of a knife-wielding man robbing a looter in downtown Port-au-Prince, Haiti; Viktor Pivovarov, Moncton Times & Transcript, for a photo of the RCMP chasing a knife-wielding man after an armed robbery and hostage-taking incident in Lakeville, N.B.
* Breaking News: Winner: Team, Toronto Star, for reporting on the G20 summit in Toronto. Runners-up: Christie Blatchford, Greg McArthur, Steve Ladurantaye, Timothy Appleby, The Globe and Mail, for coverage of the Russell Williams case; Steven Edwards, Postmedia Network, for initial stories from the Haiti earthquake.

Brian Gable of The Globe and Mail is back again with his offbeat cartoons of high profile news events. Among his submissions, there’s a mother admonishing her children to “prorogue it.” There’s another of two children wondering where to put the batteries in a book. The royal wedding will also be subject to austerity and cutbacks. Torontonians arrive in Calgary as “boat people” fleeing the Rob Ford era as mayor; and Peter McKay declines to resign because the money’s too good. Gable has been nominated for an 11th year and has won this award five times.

The total for the 2010 competition was 170 more than the previous year.

Two photography categories led the way. Feature Photography attracted 126 entries, the same number as News Feature Photo. There were 115 Column entries, 111 Long Features (down from 132), and 103 Short Features.

Beat Reporting came in at 95 entries, the most ever since the category was introduced in 2002.

Local Reporting nearly doubled the number of entries in this exclusive small market category (under 30,000 average daily circulation). The category logged 35 entries, compared with 19 in 2009.

The newest category, Multi-Media Feature, drew 22 entries, up from 19 the year before.

Other increases in entries were in Breaking News (42, up from 38); International Reporting (50, up from 31); Editorial Writing (34, up from 29); Arts and Entertainment (83, up from 70); Sports (58, up from 57); Spot News Photo (69, up from 53); Sports Photography (86, up from 69); Special Project (20, up from 16); Presentation (67, up from 43); Explanatory Work (69, up from 67); and Politics (48, up from 37).

Other categories with slight declines: Investigations (39, down from 44); Editorial Cartooning (24, down from 26); and Business Reporting (47, down from 53).

All entries are in the hands of the 66 judges (three judges in each category) and results are expected in mid-March.

For those entering in the new online categories, the process is much the same and should be self-explanatory. Click on How to Submit Entries in the right rail in the ONLINE ENTRIES section.  It is necessary to register for an account before submitting, This account is good for submitting entries in any category and remains active from year to year.Entries submitted for Explanatory Work and Multi-media are to be submitted in text/simple text (.txt) format. In some cases, you may also submit the main file in Word (.doc) format (optional).

In the case of Explanatory Work, a covering letter is important, especially if it has URLs connecting to graphics or illustration.

In entering Multi-media Feature, a covering letter is all that is necessary. All URLs referenced in the letter must be placed in the fields supplied on the online submission form.

Should you run into problems, please email our online entry expert, Ron Poling, at ronpoling@sympatico.ca. Ron will be standing by to help.

Deadline for Entries

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Entry Fees

Remain the same: $40 for large market newspapers; $25 for small market newspapers (under 30,000 circulation). Both British Columbia and Ontario papers now must pay HST.

2011 Awards gala

Friday, May 13, Canadian War Museum, Ottawa

Entry Forms

If you need an entry form, consult the NNA website at and download the PDF versions or consult the rules on the website.

The nominees:
• Multimedia Feature: Winner: Toronto Star for report of the Toronto school board’s long-term support programs for expelled students; Runners-up: The Canadian Press on the impact of nanotechnology on humans; The Globe and Mail for a study of the lives of women in Afghanistan.
• News Feature Photography: Winner: Bruno Schlumberger of the Ottawa Citizen for a photo of an 85-year-old war veteran in the late afternoon light at a war memorial ceremony; Runners-up: Pawel Dwulit of the Toronto Star for a photo of a child wiping tears from a father’s eyes after his son was killed outside a convenience store; Darryl Dyck of The Canadian Press for a shot of grounded helicopter pilots watching as a B.C. forest fire rages in the distance.
• Beat Reporting: Winner: Michelle Shephard, Toronto Star, for her national security beat; Runners-up: Jodie Sinnema, Edmonton Journal, for health reporting; Rob Tripp, Kingston Whig-Standard, for crime-justice coverage.
• Explanatory Work: Winner: Stephanie Nolen, The Globe and Mail, for a story of why children in India are dying of malnutrition despite that nation’s economic prosperity; Runners-up: Catherine Porter, Toronto Star, for the story of a case of strawberries from California to their destinations in the Toronto area; Paul Waldie and Grant Robertson of The Globe and Mail for a story on the history of flu vaccine and how it has become an economic powerhouse.
• Politics: Winner: James Travers of the Toronto Star for articles on the undermining of Parliament and other democratic institutions; Runners-up: Stephen Maher of the Halifax Chronicle-Herald for stories that got former Natural Resources Minister Lisa Raitt in trouble; Paula Simons of the Edmonton Journal for columns about the Alberta government’s anti-gay amendments to the Human Rights Act.
• Short Features: Winner: Jennifer Wells, Toronto Star, for a story on impresario Garth Drabinsky’s conviction for fraud; Runners-up: Agnès Gruda of La Presse in Montreal for a piece on an Congolese immigrant woman separated from her children for a long stretch because of bureaucratic delays; Tom Blackwell of the National Post for a story on the information gleaned from autopsies on slain Canadian soldiers and how that information can protect those still fighting the Afghan war.
• Local Reporting: Winner: Scott Tracey, Rob O’Flanagan and Nicole O’Reilly of the Guelph Mercury for an investigation of the local gravel industry; Runners-up: Rob Tripp and Paul Schliesmann of the Kingston Whig-Standard for stories of the mysterious death of four Montreal women in an alleged honour killing; Elliot Ferguson and Bruce Urquhart of the Woodstock Sentinel-Review for the coverage of the abduction and murder of schoolgirl Tori Stafford.
• Presentation: Winner: Jason Chiu and David Pratt, The Globe and Mail; Runners-up: Geneviève Biloski, National Post; David Woodside, The Globe and Mail.
• Special Project: Winner: Vancouver Province for Operation Phoenix, a community project in search of solutions and hope for the notorious Downtown Eastside; Runners-up: The Hamilton Spectator for a project on “The Way We Spend” which spoke directly to the needs of readers in a frightening economy; Windsor Star for “Fallen Angels”, a series that linked a Windsor charity in Haiti to the worldwide phenomenon of sex tourism.
• Sports Photography: Winner: Mike Cassese of Reuters for a photo of a ballplayer fouling the ball off his cheek; Runners-up: Ed Kaiser, Edmonton Journal, for photo of a racecar driver preparing to flee his car that caught fire in the pit lane; Chris Schwarz, Edmonton Journal, for a football action shot of a defender illegally pulling the helmet off the ballcarrier.
• Business: Winner: Jacquie McNish, Greg Keenan, and Janet McFarland of The Globe and Mail for stories on Nortel’s continuing saga and the impact on pensioners; Runners-up: Shawn McCarthy and Nathan VanderKlippe, The Globe and Mail for reporting on the quest for a clean oil industry; Jennifer Wells, Toronto Star, for a story on Canada’s booming asbestos market.
• Columns: Winner: André Picard, The Globe and Mail; Runners-up: Patrick Lagacé, La Presse, Montreal; Graham Thomson, Edmonton Journal
• Investigations: Winner: David Bruser, Toronto Star, for an investigation into the disturbing plight of Canadian soldiers returning from service in Afghanistan; Runners-up: Steve Buist, The Hamilton Spectator, for a story about people whose lives were ruined by government-sanctioned gambling; Ariane Lacoursière of La Presse in Montreal went underground to reveal sub-standard conditions and lack of staff training in privately-owned seniors’ residences.
• Arts and Entertainment: Winner: Kate Wallace, New Brunswick Telegraph-Journal, for a profile of Saint John revered artist Fred Ross; Runners-up: Susan Clairmont, The Hamilton Spectator, for columns about a debate over a urinal, a play based on a crime, and a photo exhibit of sex workers; Nick Patch, The Canadian Press, for columns on MuchMusic’s anniversary, Randy Bachman’s response to the death of Les Paul and musician Rob Mailhouse’s trials with famous actors.
• Sports: Winner: Marty Klinkenberg of the New Brunswick Telegraph-Journal for an article on the championship comeback of the Bathurst high school basketball team after a van crash had killed most of the team’s members a year earlier; Runners-up: Steve Buist of The Hamilton Spectator for story on former NHL goalie Dave Dryden’s charity work in the Third World; Isabelle Hachey of La Presse in Montreal for a story on a midget hockey team from a remote village in northern Quebec.
• Feature Photography: Winner: Bruno Schlumberger, Ottawa Citizen, for a photo of a homeless man hunkering down as snow piles up around him; Runners-up: Rachele Labrecque, The Sault Ste. Marie Star, for a photo of a tiny six-year-old child with primordial dwarfism and her mother; Carlos Osorio, Toronto Star, for a picture of a parade of carved and lit pumpkins at a community event;
• International Reporting: Winner: Geoffrey York, The Globe and Mail, on the abduction and ransoming of two Canadian diplomats; Runners-up: Michelle Shephard of the Toronto Star for stories on Yemen as a terrorist breeding ground; Graeme Smith of The Globe and Mail for stories of drug- and arms-fuelled corruption in the Afghan government.
• Editorials: Winner: Adam Radwanski, The Globe and Mail; Runners-up: Sean Fine, The Globe and Mail; Lawrie McFarlane, Victoria Times Colonist;
• Editorial Cartooning: Winner: Brian Gable, The Globe and Mail; Runners-up : Malcolm Mayes, Edmonton Journal; Terry Mosher (Aislin), The Gazette, Montreal.
• Long Features: Winner: Michèle Ouimet, La Presse, Montréal, for a disturbing examination of a monstrous crime; Runners-up: Carolyn Abraham, The Globe and Mail, Toronto, for a compelling report on geroscience, prolonging the human lifespan; Team Entry, La Presse, Montréal, for an evocative look at the global food crisis.
• News Photography: Winner: Steve Russell, Toronto Star, for a photo of a nighttime brawl outside a Toronto nightclub; Runners-up: Carlos Osorio, Toronto Star, for a photo of loved ones mourning the body of one of three Polish men who drowned in the Lake Muskoka region; Louie Palu, ZUMA Press/Toronto Star, for a shot of a Canadian medic gently closing the eyes of a young Afghan man who died in a gunfight.
• Breaking News: Winner: a team from the London Free Press for a series of stories about the abduction and killing of eight-year-old Tori Stafford of Woodstock; Runners-up: Dawn Walton, Les Perreaux and Josh Wingrove, The Globe and Mail, for their coverage of a couple’s romantic ski trip that turned into tragedy in the B.C. interior; Kenyon Wallace of the Toronto Star for his reporting of a crash of a helicopter off the coast of Newfoundland and the loss of 17 lives.
For more information: Bryan Cantley, Secretary, National Newspaper Awards, 890 Yonge St., Suite 200, Toronto, ON M4W 3P4. Tel: 416-575-5377; Fax: 416-923-7206; email: bcantley@cna-acj.ca.

Leading the way was Long Features with 130 entries, followed by Columns with 117.

There were 320 entries in the four photography categories: Feature Photo, 101; News Feature Photo, 97; Sports Photo 69; and Spot News Photo, 53.

Other categories:

Breaking News, 38
Short Features, 92
Investigations, 44
International Reporting, 31
Business Reporting, 53
Editorial Writing, 29
Arts and Entertainment, 70
Sports Writing, 57
Special Project, 16
Presentation, 43
Editorial Cartooning, 26
Explanatory Work, 67
Politics, 37
Beats, 91
Local Reporting, 19
Multimedia Feature, 19

Judging has commenced and results are expected to be known in early March when three finalists will be selected in each category.
The awards will be handed out on Friday, May 14, at the Sheraton Centre Hotel in Toronto. The event marks the closing of the two-day Ink and Beyond conference being put on by the Canadian Newspaper Association and the Canadian Community Newspaper Association.

Lang, 34, was the 2008 winner for Beat Reporting.

Her citation in the NNA program read: “As the Calgary Herald’s health reporter, Michelle Lang routinely broke stories last year on national and provincial health care issues. Two of them dealt with Canada’s desperate hunt for doctors. She brought readers into the lives of the foreign medical professionals who are staffing Canadian hospitals and the bidding wars for their services. In another, she analyzed the ethics of recruiting, or poaching, physicians from the developing world, notably South Africa. That country’s beleaguered health system has been grappling with the highest number of HIV-AIDS cases in the world.”

“On behalf of the Board of Governors of the NNAs, I want to extend my heartfelt condolences to Michelle’s family, her fiancé and her extended journalistic family at the Calgary Herald and throughout the country,” said Scott White, chair of the NNA Board of Governors. “This is a tragedy we feared might happen someday but it doesn’t make it any easier to accept. Our journalists in wartime regions are brave and committed souls.”

The Calgary Herald’s website (www.calgaryherald.com) has a great deal more, including a guest book which attracted hundreds of messages of condolences in the first 24 hours of the announcement of her death.

“It’s a devastating day. I’m totally heartbroken. I feel for her family, her fiance, her friends and I feel for the newsroom,” said Herald editor-in-chief Lorne Motley after learning of Michelle’s death.

“It creates this hole, not only for the Herald, obviously, but also for Canwest and any other news organization because we’re a pretty tight-knit group as journalists. We’re family and when we lose one of our own, that’s difficult for all of us to accept.”

Entry Rules - Rule Number Four (definition of a story)

The current rule #4 states: A story may comprise a main story and one closely-related sidebar.

The new rule #4 states: A story may comprise a main story and closely-related sidebars published on the same day.

The change is designed to accommodate the practice of newspapers breaking up a story into smaller parts for format or presentation reasons.

Multi-media Feature

Entrants may now submit TWO online Multi-Media Features. (Special Project submissions will remain at one entry per news organization.)

Editorial Cartooning

Editorial cartoonists now must submit a body of work of five editorial cartoons. The previous requirement was for a single cartoon or a body of work of up to three cartoons. Submissions will be made online for the second year. This is the third year for entering and judging the four photography categories online.

Website content

There are still some sections to be updated and created, such as the history section and archives. Downloadable PDFs of the 2009 entry rules, categories and entry ballots are now online.

In the months ahead, text and photo entries will be posted from as far back as 1949.

Deadline for Entries

Monday, January 11, 2010