2020 Results

Spot News Photography (over 25,000 circulation)   Winner: Dale Carruthers, London Free Press Dale Carruthers of the London Free Press captures with absolute clarity a compassionate police officer cradling and protecting the head of a struggling suspect during a takedown and

 COVID-19 Feature Writing    Winner: Doug Schmidt, Windsor Star  After long-term care homes, COVID-19’s next big target was the farm sector and the thousands of temporary foreign workers employed in it — people whose precarious working conditions were exacerbated by

Beat Reporting (under 25,000 circulation)   Winner: Mary Katherine Keown, Sudbury Star In this ambitious entry, Keown puts a local spotlight on the province-wide scourge of human trafficking. She staked out a local hotel, spoke with survivors, their families, academics

Feature Photography (under 25,000 circulation)   Winner: Bob Tymczyszyn, St. Catharines Standard and Niagara Falls Review This simple yet powerful image expertly sums up the passion, defiance and purpose of the Black Lives Matter movement, with the single fist in close-up

Spot News Photography (under 25,000 circulation)   Winner: Bob Tymczyszyn, St. Catharines Standard Tymczyszyn shot a captivating, well-composed photo that was the most memorable of the entrants this year. It tells the story of increased hiking injuries in the region

Feature Writing (under 25,000 circulation)   Winner: Scott Dunn, Owen Sound Sun-Times Scott Dunn’s series of three stories looks at the drinking water disaster of Walkerton through multiple, compelling voices, including those of residents who lived through the tragedy and the perspective

General News Feature   Winner: Jon Wells, Hamilton Spectator Wells’ win in this category comes because his thoughtful, well researched and beautifully written submission defines news feature writing. He revisited a spot new story weeks after it took place and

COVID-19 Photography   Winner: Bob Tymczyszyn, St. Catharines Standard Bob Tymczyszyn’s single image of two tour boats passing near Niagara Falls manages to perfectly tap into the international conversation about COVID-19, capturing the vast disparity of responses in Canada and

Enterprise Writing   Winner: Katrina Clarke, Hamilton Spectator In this months-long investigative piece, Katrina Clarke exposed systemic sexual violence and harassment at McMaster University that had long been concealed and often ignored by the school’s officials. Clarke began her investigation

Feature Photography (over 25,000 circulation)   Winner: Derek Ruttan, London Free Press This photo breaks your heart, but also fills it with hope. With Santa’s lap off limits due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the photographer captures the magic of Christmas

Feature Writing (over 25,000 circulation)   Winner: Jon Wells, Hamilton Spectator  Jon Wells’ 5,400-word feature on the death of a popular Port Dover fisherman mixes extensive reportage with confident, detail-driven writing that compels the audience to keep reading. The story

Spot News Writing (over 25,000 circulation)   Winner: London Free Press team entry (Derek Ruttan, Randy Richmond, Dale Carruthers, Jonathan Juha, Dan Brown, Mike Hensen and Heather Rivers) Despite numerous challenges the Free Press faced in covering the building collapse