ENVIRONMENT ONTARIO Premier Award ~ WRITING

Judge

Second Place

PARRY SOUND NORTH STAR

The front page picture of the turtle peeking from his shell at the centre line of the road had me from the outset. The story was lively, interesting and well researched. Declining turtle populations – an environmental issue everyone can champion.

Terri Arnott

Terri Arnott, journalism professor at Humber College spent 15 years writing, editing and producing community newspapers from Exeter to Fort Erie to Lindsay. She’s been there and done that. Gathering colleagues in the community news business with each graduating year, Terri takes pride in the achievements of former students as they rise through the ranks. She continues to be most grateful to the OCNA editors and managers who give young journalists that first chance and often encourage those same writers to take the big chance that produces an award winning entry. Award winning journalism remains a team effort.

First Place

ELMIRA-WOOLWICH OBSERVER

A lively, thorough, well written and beautifully illustrated story that touches virtually everyone. Readers certainly learned some good lessons here.

Third Place

OAKVILLE BEAVER

What happens when the town’s largest employer and largest taxpayer is also the worst polluter? It’s a big story with a host of polluting bad guys caught in the net of a new Health Protection air quality bylaw.

– A tough competition to judge. Environmental issues are frequently emotional and always complex. Some issues pit neighbour against neighbour, others make major employers the bad guys in the community. Sometimes the story of environmental danger or degradation can foster a solidarity amoung readers. Whatever the issue, one thing is clear: an environmental story has at least two sides and readers deserve – demand – to hear from more than one.

General Comment

Judge

Second Place

OSHAWA THIS WEEK

Another ambitious piece of journalism. The writer and team of visual journalists deserve credit for giving readers insight into the plight of migrant workers, not a story that can be told without some effort. The photos and layout for this piece stood above the rest. While the story presents the lives of these workers who work jobs no one else wants, it could go further to describe how it feels to be away from home for months at a stretch. But overall, well conceived and well executed.

Bryan Alary

Bryan Alary is co-editor of the awardwinning twice-weekly St. Albert Gazette, his home for the last five years. His work has been recognized by the Canadian Community Newspapers Association, Alberta Weekly Newspapers Association and the Suburban Newspapers of America. Under his watch the Gazette has repeated as best all-around newspaper in its class from provincial and national newspaper associations.

First Place

Peterborough This Week

This piece exemplified what good community journalism is all about, telling stories about important local issues that aren’t pretty or easy to find but need to be told. This story was ambitious in scope but successfully shed light on homelessness and poverty in Peterborough. The entry was well-written, and presented in a clean package. The only criticism would be the inclusion of perhaps too many agency sources and not enough real-life experience from the street. Overall, excellent job.

Third Place

Milton Canadian Champion

This story makes an immediate impact with a great lead thanks to a writer who knows a golden anecdote when it presents itself. Those anecdotes fly fast and furious throughout this superbly written piece about a Second World War veteran’s wartime experiences. Despite simpler subject matter than the other finalists, the writing propels it into the top three.

GENERAL COMMENT – This was a very difficult category to judge, with many excellent submissions. The margin of victory from first to sixth was tight thanks to dedicated journalists doing what they do best. Plenty of great stories to choose from in the top 10 and beyond.

Second Place

Tilbury Times

Another well written piece. At first glance it appeared as if this was going to be just another mini-tribute to an aging professional, something we’ve all done many times but somehow this writer managed to catch the essence of the man who was the focus of the piece. A nice comfortable lead in, a good read, exactly what a feature should be. Layout was not great, but certainly good enough to land in the finalist group.

Judge

Norm Park

A veteran of the newspaper industry, Park began his journalistic career in southern Ontario before moving to the Caribbean and Saskatchewan where he has enjoyed a long career as editor, publisher, columnist and feature writer among other things. He is a four-time winner of the SWNA Columnist of the Year Award plus several awards for feature writing and photography. Park is currently co-editor of the Estevan Mercury

First Place

Vankleek Hill Review

Excellent scope-well written and well researched. Team efforts can be challenging at times but certainly successful here. The demise of the standardbred industry was explored in detail and presented in an interesting fashion with decent graphic and photo support. Tracking it from the racing itself to trainers, rescue services, and budgets showed initiative that needs to be rewarded.

Third Place

Stayner Sun

There was a strong start to this feature, the subject material was handled professionally. The side bar information added that extra touch. Good graphics/ layout that helped attract attention in the first place.

GENERAL

Comment

– There were some exceptional entries in this category which indicates there are some excellent writers within this group. I truly enjoyed the disparity in subjects and some imaginative approaches taken. There wasn’t one entry that didn’t deserve to be there. That made the judging extremely difficult. I urge all entrants this year to have a run at it again next year because everyone displayed some distinct skills and personalities in their compositions and presentations.

Second Place

Kanata Kourierstandard

Nevil Hunt of the Kanata Kourier-Standard asks: Do you know what’s in your well? The answer is a scary one for residents all across the capital region who find no one is really sure. High impact story, well written, well researched, well presented.

Judge

Terri Arnott

Terri Arnott, journalism professor at Humber College spent 15 years writing, editing and producing community newspapers from Exeter to Fort Erie to Lindsay. She’s been there and done that. Gathering colleagues in the community news business with each graduating year, Terri takes pride in the achievements of former students as they rise through the ranks. She continues to be most grateful to the OCNA editors and managers who give young journalists that first chance and often encourage those same writers to take the big chance that produces an award winning entry. Award winning journalism remains a team effort.

First Place

Peterborough This Week

Lauren Gilchrist’s story goes well beyond the usual plea for donors. The tale of the local woman who saved the life of a stranger by donating stem cells from blood was an inspiration to readers. Only a few in the community may be touched by the tragedy of waiting for a donor – virtually all citizens can follow this lead. Lauren brings the donor and recipient to life through quotes and goes to the experts for advice.

Third Place

RICHMOND HILL/ THORNHILL LIBERAL

Kim Zarzour tells the readers of Richmond Hill/Thornhill Liberal that prescription drug abuse can start right in your family medicine cabinet. That’s where most abusers get their fix in this growing public health problem. Kim goes to the users and the experts to bring a comprehensive look at what’s happening and what can be done about it.

GENERAL COMMENT – The Health and Wellness category was awash with news both good and bad for communities and their residents across Ontario. To be considered in this category the story needed to have the potential to touch the lives of many, present research readers can use to assess the situation, and bring several voices into the discussion. One source stories rarely give enough detail and meeting/event coverage usually lacked the research needed. Winners told a well rounded story that was engaging, community based, had the potential to touch on many lives and gave clear indication of what could be done by individuals or groups to make the situation better.

HONOURABLE MENTION – Scarborough Mirror writer Lisa Queen for her story on the anxiety of dialysis patients caused by a shortage of a critical drug.

Sponsored by Hamilton Community News

Second Place

This story was very nicely put together. Who wouldn’t love a story about hockey in Canada –especially a story that brought a small contingent of grass roots players to the forefront, as equals to the stars in the big leagues?

JUDGE Steve Bonspiel

Steve Bonspiel is the Editor/Publisher of The Eastern Door newspaper in Kahnawake, Quebec. Specializing in Native issues and hailing from Kahnawake’s sister community of Kanesatake, Steve is known for his balanced and fair reporting on touchy and controversial Aboriginal issues. In 2009 Steve was awarded the Lindsey Crysler award for outstanding contribution to community newspapers by the Quebec Community Newspapers Association. He and his wife Tracey Deer purchased TED in July, 2008 after working for The Nation magazine for five and a half years. Steve has also freelanced for the Montreal Gazette on numerous occasions and a number of Aboriginal newspapers and magazines.

First Place

Brock Citizen

Scott Howard’s piece on a POW’s story including actual excerpts from old army news clippings written by the veteran really gave a human face to something that is difficult at the best of times. I just wanted to keep reading more about this brave man. A great job and well deserving of first place!

Third Place

Burks Falls Almaguin News

It never ceases to interest me when I get the chance to read about the hard-working people in the newspaper business and the ever-evolving world they saw and reported on first-hand. There were a few minor mistakes but I really enjoyed this piece.

GENERAL COMMENT – I learned a lot from this competition, about Ontario history, about colourful and fun people and stories - but most of all I learned that all of these writers had one thing in common – their love for the community they serve. Although some entries were short and the overall scope of entries was difficult to judge at times – from an editorial to a feature to a news piece – this category is certainly one of the most important in the competition. Remembering our past helps to make our future brighter.

Sponsored by Fort Frances Times

Second Place

Whitby This Week

As society’s population continues to age toward the baby boom bulge, we’re seeing trouble with communities’ ability to manage the needs of their most vulnerable citizens – the infirm elderly. Community newspapers need to spend more time keeping an eye on the quality of care in their nursing homes, and reporters Jillian Folert, Rob O’Flanagan and Mike Adler did just that when they launched a series of stories titled “Situation Critical...The crisis in long term care.” They performed stalwart work interviewing residents, practitioners and officials to get to the bottom of stagnant and bottlenecked access to beds and services. Well done.

JUDGE Joe Banks

Joe Banks has been an Ontario community newspaper reporter, editor and publisher for 25 years. He now coordinates, and is a professor for the journalism program at Algonquin College.

First Place

Aylmer Express

This entry proved that good work does not have to extend over multiple issues or require sophisticated graphics to lay bare an issue that can do great harm to a community. The winner uncovered a major problem with abuse of the powerful painkiller OxyContin, which has been responsible for pharmacy break-ins and ruined lives in the community. “OxyContin users in Aylmer come as young as 15 and as old as in their 50s”, the police told reporters Gene Mooney and Rob Perry. What followed was a methodical, well-researched and packaged group of stories in a single issue that examines everyone affected.

Third Place

Peterborough This Week

Marginalized people are still a fact of life in 2011 Ontario, but Peterborough This Week went beyond identifying them as a statistic they named them one by one, putting a face to a community blight that has cost lives and social service budgets. Behind the stark stories of Big Joe, Jesse James, Bongo Dave and Lorne Clapper, we are taken into a world few of us venture, and come to realize the factors that have contributed to their often short and tortured lives. National research shows us that the death rate among the homeless is 8 to 10 times higher than among the same-age population of people who are well-housed, the story quotes a local health unit official. This Week reporters brought that stat to the street level and in doing so, did its community an immense favour.

GENERAL COMMENT – Each member paper that entered this category is to be congratulated for doing something that is rapidly disappearing among their small and medium daily counterparts – depth reporting. Taking time and energy away from the ever-expanding day-to-day duties must not be easy these days, especially in the smaller market and rural areas where resources are scarce. So when we see deliberate, methodical investigations into vital community stories, it’s important to salute the efforts of the reporters, editors and publishers who have the courage and stamina to ferret out facts and tell the truth. Let’s hope they continue their important work. The winners in this category shone a light into the dark corners of their communities and took a look at the scourges that affect people in a direct and indirect way.

JUDGE Jim Zeeben

As the editor of the Saanich News, Jim Zeeben serves newspaper readers on south Vancouver Island. He has worked at the Black Press headquarters in Victoria since 2000, helping manage a newsroom shared by the region’s three community newspapers.

First Place

Mississauga News

A well-researched story that hits a nerve not only with the community but also with a much broader issue facing the country and the world. Good writing by Louie Rosella with adequate space devoted to photos and related stories. The scope of coverage and range of images offers a comprehensive look at a truly compelling story.

Second Place

Ottawa Hill Times

A big issue fearlessly reported. Reporter Tim Naumetz earns points for telling an important story that transcends the paper’s primary audience.

Third Place

Burlington Post

This fresh story about a well-documented tragedy won out over a number of other quality entries in the competition. Christina Commisso’s report benefited from the fortunate relationship the paper established with the subject prior to their move to Haiti. A nice lede draws the reader into the story, which manages to relate a global event on a local scale.

Judge

Tim Jaques

Tim Jaques has been the editor of The Tribune in Campbellton, New Brunswick, since 2005

First Place

Haliburton County Echo

Engaging right from the lead. Excellent news story helped by nice presentation.

Second Place

Parry Sound Beacon Star

Another one that was interesting right from the first graph.

Third Place

Sioux Lookout Wawatay News

Well-rounded story that involves all the right people.

GENERAL COMMENT – All of the stories were at the high end of competent and workmanlike. The three I picked were the ones I found the most rounded and the most engaging to me as a reader.

Second Place

OTTAWA EMBASSY

Another well-rounded story on an issue of national importance.

JUDGE

Tim Jaques

Tim Jaques has been the editor of The Tribune in Campbellton, New Brunswick, since 2005

First Place

OTTAWA HILL TIMES

Well-rounded story on an issue of national importance.

Third Place

Great story on a local initiative.

GENERAL COMMENT – All of the entries in this category were well-written and interesting. There wasn’t a clunker amongst them. They were pleasant to read, but difficult to judge. Many were exquisitely laid out. There were several crowded near the top but these squeezed through at the post, mainly because of their depth.

Second Place

New Liskeard Temiskaming Speaker

Well written story. Through her report, Diane Johnston gives the reader a good sense of the importance of this local event to the rural area and its economy. The writer took what could have been just a simple story or photo feature on this event, packed it with detail and information and produced a fine story. Good job with photos and layout as well.

Judge

Barbara Dean Simmons

Barbara Dean-Simmons has been involved in the community newspaper business in Newfoundland and Labrador for 30 years. In that time she has won several Atlantic Canada and national awards for reporting, editorial writing and photography. She is currently editor of The Packet, one of the largest community newspapers in the province – serving 99 communities in the Trinity, Bonavista and Placentia Bay region. Since 2009 she has been associate managing editor of Transcontinental’s Newfoundland and Labrador weeklies, offering assistance and direction to 14 weekly newspapers and leading provincewide editorial projects.

First Place

New Hamburg Independent

Very informative story. Doug Colson took a complex issue and explained it well. Excellent layout with good use of photos, graphics, to help tell the story. It is obvious the reporter put a great deal of time and effort into this, from the research and writing, right to the final presentation. Well done.

Third Place

Kincardine Independent

Excellent story. Lots of voices. Kristen Shane painted a very vivid picture of the town and the challenge of trying to get young people to stay. The addition of photos of the town, the speakers in the story would have earned the entry more points. But overall, a great story.

GENERAL COMMENT – The stories in this category were all fairly well done. My decision on the winners was based on what I thought a Rural story should be - a story that focuses on a local issue or event, with writing based on more than one source of information, giving the reader a sense of the importance of this subject to the local area. The top three did this well.

Sponsored by Transcontinental Media c/o Orleans Star

Second Place

NEWMARKET ERA-BANNER

Complex planning and impressive design carried the day for The Banner Era in its package of stories offering fundamental yet detailed advice and information about money management for different community sectors.

Judge

Joe Callahan

Joe Callahan is coordinator of the Journalism-Online, Print and Broadcast program at Loyalist College of Applied Arts and Technology in Belleville. With the ongoing support of the OCNA, he completed a Master’s degree in June 2010 focusing on journalism standards and accreditation. His study was published by Athabasca University and it can be found on the OCNA’s web site.

First Place

BRIGHTON / EAST NORTHUMBERLAND INDEPENDENT

The Brighton Independent submitted its coverage of the Russell Williams story and in doing so exhibited a bold commitment to the toughest part of journalism; telling the story that both disgusts and informs. Nothing fancy with design or storytelling, just the stark tragedy of the facts as they unfolded. It is worth noting that the paper published a detailed chronology of events surrounding the story.

Third Place

Mississauga News

Illustrating that there is a place for informed opinion in the news pages of a community paper, The Mississauga News presented a compelling package in its advocacy series claiming that the Peel district was being unfairly treated by social services public policy. Strong, cohesive design complete with informative graphics and photos that put a face to the story lifted this submission above others.

HONOURABLE MENTION – In the chaos of coverage that follows natural disasters, the Midland Mirror provided comprehensive coverage of the community’s response to the wrath of a tornado. Compelling photography and detailed writing that focused on the afflicted while observing the political response distinguished this entry.

GENERAL COMMENT – This year’s Best Feature/News Story Series submissions were representative of the complexity of news coverage in Ontario today and illustrated a broad range of approaches as well as a multiplicity of standards. The leading publications devoted resources and space to important stories; advocacy for fairness in public policy, money management and a community’s response to natural disasters. The winning entry showed a commitment to doing what only journalism can; tell the ugly but all-important truth and how it affects individuals in communities, and in this case, a nation.

Second Place

Manotick Messenger

The Manotick Messenger’s stories about the death of a hometown RCMP officer in the Yukon covered all the bases – from the actual cause-of-death incident, to questioning whether or not the death could have been prevented, to community reaction. This obviously wasn’t a pre-planned series, but the writing by Jeffrey Morris and Genesee Keevil and the Messenger’s commitment to give the story special treatment made it deserving of honours.

Judge

Gail Sjuberg

Gail Sjuberg has been the editor of the award-winning Gulf Islands Driftwood newspaper in B.C. since 2003 and in the community newspaper business for more than 20 years. She is also the editor of Driftwood Publishing Ltd.’s magazine called Aqua-Gulf Islands Living and the Gulf Islander tourist guide, and has been a judge for numerous OCNA and CCNA competitions.

First Place

Vankleek Hill Review

Justin Bromberg’s series on solar energy in Eastern Ontario in The Review deserves first place for clear, solid presentation of complex and well-researched material. Bromberg made an important yet un-sexy subject interesting to read about.

Third Place

New Hamburg Independent

A two-part series on the state of sex education provided a thorough refresher course for readers of the New Hamburg Independent. Tim Murphy’s stories may also have prompted parents to take a more proactive role in ensuring their children are informed, safe and healthy.

Second Place

Kincardine Independent

Very different type of story – but that’s what drew me to it. With better layout this would have taken top spot. Photos were strong, but a little more flair in the layout really would have brought the reader in. Still, I don’t read too many Quidditch stories, so good job on finding something interesting to write.