Globe and Mail wins CJF Jackman Award for Excellence in Journalism
TORONTO, June 14, 2018 /CNW/ - The Globe and Mail is this year's recipient of the CJF Jackman Award for Excellence in Journalism in the large-media category, presented at the annual Canadian Journalism Foundation Awards. Its "Unfounded" investigation exposed systemic flaws in the ways police handle sexual assault complaints.
"This is an outstanding piece of work in every way: overall investigation, data analysis, testimonials, expert interviews, team effort, writing and design," says Excellence jury member Colette Brin, director of the Centre d'études sur les médias, Université Laval. "It is a major story with momentous impact, at the cusp of the #MeToo movement."
Named after CJF founder Eric Jackman, this annual award honours a news organization whose journalism has effected profound and positive change. The Globe series prompted a national overhaul of police policy, training and practices around sexual violence, and a review of thousands of previously closed cases.
For her work on the "Unfounded" series, Globe and Mail reporter Robyn Doolittle was also recognized with The Landsberg Award, which celebrates exceptional coverage of women's equality issues. The award is presented by the CJF in association with the Canadian Women's Foundation.
In the small-media category, The Independent of Petrolia and Central Lambton won the CJF Jackman Excellence Award for the weekly's stories revealing that the southwestern Ontario town of Petrolia's chief administrative officer lied about his ownership of two buildings—a youth centre and storage facility—which represented conflicts of interest.
For the new CJF-Facebook Journalism Project News Literacy Award, the winner was Radio-Canada for its weekly program Corde sensible, which confronts misinformation and false stories where they flourish —on social media networks. The program's short video, Fausses Nouvelles : suffit d'y croire, is adapted for Facebook and YouTube to ensure shareability.
The sold-out CJF Awards event was attended by more than 600 journalists, media executives and business leaders from across the country at the Fairmont Royal York in Toronto.
Among the evening's other award winners:
- The CJF-CBC Indigenous Journalism Fellowships, designed to foster better comprehension of Indigenous issues, went to Jasmine Kabatay and Ntawnis Piapot, who will each explore issues of interest while being hosted by CBC News for one month at its Indigenous Centre in Winnipeg. Kabatay is an Anishinaabe freelance journalist from Seine River First Nation in northwestern Ontario and a Toronto-based national columnist with StarMetro. For her winning proposal, she will explore the relevance and usefulness of the status card—first introduced in 1956—given the general confusion, ignorance and misconceptions that surround its usage. Piapot, a Nehiyaw Iskwew from the Piapot Cree Nation in southern Saskatchewan, is completing a master's degree in journalism at the University of Regina. She will explore how journalism schools in Canada are implementing the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's call to incorporate Indigenous studies into their journalism programs. The fellowships are supported by CN, CJF honorary governor Rosemary Speirs and Isabel Bassett, former Chair and CEO of TVO.
- The Atkinson Fellowship in Public Policy, which provides a seasoned Canadian journalist with $100,000 and an opportunity to pursue a year-long investigation into a current policy issue, goes to Shree Paradkar, race and gender columnist with the Toronto Star, who will investigate the failure of Canada's public education system to deliver equitable outcomes for racialized and Indigenous students. The fellowship is a collaboration of the Atkinson Foundation, the Toronto Star and the Honderich family.
- The Tom Hanson Photojournalism Award, presented with The Canadian Press and supported by Nikon, went to Tijana Martin, a photojournalist with the Lethbridge Herald. This award provides an early-career photojournalist with the opportunity to spend six weeks with The Canadian Press head office in Toronto.
- The William Southam Journalism Fellowships, which reward mid-career journalists with an academic year to audit courses and participate fully in life at Massey College, are awarded annually by the University of Toronto and Massey College. This year's winners are:
- Lagu Joseph Kenyi, managing editor of The Juba Monitor, in South Sudan, is the recipient of the Gordon N. Fisher/JHR Fellowship, awarded in partnership with Journalists for Human Rights and named after Gordon N. Fisher who, along with St. Clair Balfour of Southam Newspapers, created the fellowships in 1962;
- Amy Dempsey, a features writer with the Toronto Star, who received the St. Clair Balfour Fellowship;
- Richard Warnica, features writer with National Post, who received the Webster/McConnell Fellowship;
- Richard Goddard, a senior producer with The Current, CBC Radio, who received the CBC/Radio-Canada Fellowship; and
- Chris Windeyer, editor of the Yukon News, who received the McLaughlin Centre Fellowship.
The previously announced Lifetime Achievement Award went to Peter Mansbridge, former longtime anchor of The National and chief correspondent for CBC News, for his exceptional broadcast career.
Special CJF honourees this year included New York Times reporters Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey, who were presented with the annual CJF Tribute, alongside Ronan Farrow, of The New Yorker, who was recognized with a CJF Special Citation, for their Pulitzer Prize winning pieces that detailed sexual harassment and assault allegations against movie producer Harvey Weinstein, fuelling a global social media movement against sexual misconduct.
The evening's performances included: a surprise appearance by the Arkells playing "Whistleblower"; Sarah Harmer, the Juno-winning singer-songwriter, who accompanied the In Memoriam segment; Emma Hunter and Miguel Rivas, co-anchors of The Beaverton, who performed a satirical news sketch; and Seán Cullen, award-winning comedian, who acted as the live announcer.
The CJF Awards thanks the generous support of presenting sponsor CN and sponsors Salesforce, Labatt Breweries of Canada, Thomson Reuters, Ivanhoé Cambridge, Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec, Shaw Communications, Google News Initiative, General Motors of Canada, Medtronic, Barrick Gold Corporation, Rogers, Accenture, CTV News, the Jackman Foundation, Scotiabank, the Facebook Journalism Project and Power Corporation of Canada. Thanks also to in-kind supporters The Globe and Mail, Postmedia Network, CISION, The Canadian Press, Porter Airlines, Bespoke Audio Visual and Charton Hobbs.
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About The Canadian Journalism Foundation
Established in 1990, The Canadian Journalism Foundation promotes, celebrates and facilitates excellence in journalism. The foundation runs a prestigious annual awards and fellowships program featuring an industry gala where news leaders, journalists and corporate Canada gather to celebrate outstanding journalistic achievement and the value of professional journalism. Through monthly J-Talks, a public speakers' series, the CJF facilitates dialogue among journalists, business people, academics and students about the role of the media in Canadian society and the ongoing challenges for media in the digital era. The foundation also fosters opportunities for journalism education, training and research.
SOURCE Canadian Journalism Foundation
For further information: Media Contact Information: Wendy Kan, The Canadian Journalism Foundation, E-mail: [email protected], www.cjf-fjc.ca
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