The NMAF is proud to announce the winners of the 2017 Digital Publishing Awards, recognizing excellence in the content and creation of Canadian digital publications.
[Results Page] [Winners List] [Press Release]
The NMAF presented Gold and Silver awards in 21 categories at this year’s Digital Publishing Awards Soirée, held at The Spoke Club on Thursday June 1 in Toronto’s King West district and hosted by author and illustrator Evan Munday.
To view all the winners in 21 categories, visit live.digitalpublishingawards.ca.
GENERAL EXCELLENCE IN DIGITAL PUBLISHING
This year the award for General Excellence in Digital Publishing was presented in two divisions: small publications & large publications.
Canadian Art won the Gold Medal for General Excellence in Digital Publishing: Small Publications.
“The originality and the creativity of the article subjects is striking,” said the Digital Publishing Awards jury. “Making a magazine that’s both dense and approachable is what every editor hopes to achieve, and Canadian Art has succeeded where a lot of us fall short.”
Honourable Mention in General Excellence in Digital Publishing: Small Publications was awarded to Hakai Magazine, LiisBeth, National Observer, Toronto Life and YMC: Motherhood Unfiltered.
CBC News won the Gold Medal for General Excellence in Digital Publishing: Large Publications.
The CBC News team won 3 other Gold Medals in Best News Coverage: Local & Provincial, Best Online Video: Short and Best Service Feature: Family, Health & Careers.
“CBC News represents a high-water mark for digital publishing in Canada,” remarked the Digital Publishing Awards jury. “Outstanding writing is backed up with photography, video and interactive assets across a breadth of topics that matter to Canadians. The team at CBC News continues a great tradition of producing a site that not only leads its peers in Canada, but stands comfortably with any news organization in the world.”
Honourable Mention in General Excellence in Digital Publishing: Large Publications was awarded to The Globe and Mail.
EMERGING EXCELLENCE AWARD
Naël Shiab of L’actualité was named this year’s recipient of the Emerging Excellence Award. The award honours an individual whose early work in Canadian digital publishing shows the highest degree of craft and promise.
According to the Emerging Excellence Award jury:
“Naël Shiab is a bright light shining across the world of journalism. He combines the inquisitiveness and skepticism of a journalist with the creativity and three-dimensional thinking of a coder to create astonishing data-led work that illuminates and educates and entertains. He is the future of journalism and the more Naël Shiab’s at work, the better off we are as an informed citizenry.”
DIGITAL PUBLISHING LEADERSHIP AWARD
The Digital Publishing Leadership Award was presented to Kenny Yum, managing editor of HuffPost Canada. The award honours an individual whose career contributions to Canadian digital publishing deserve recognition and celebration and was presented on stage by HuffPost Canada colleague, Andree Lau.
“Kenny Yum is the kind of journalistic leader who represents everything that’s exciting and worthwhile in our industry. Long before digital media was a priority for most places, Kenny was already working on merging high-quality Canadian journalism with innovative formats to connect intimately with audiences. After roles at The Globe and Mail, National Post, Financial Post and CBC, Kenny helped launched HuffPost Canada six years ago. There, he’s built one of the country’s youngest, most culturally diverse newsrooms, where he challenges us to strive for excellence and innovation every day.” – Andree Lau, Managing Editor of News at HuffPost Canada
Best Digital Editorial Package
GOLD: The Trafficked, The Globe and Mail
SILVER: Power Struggle, Discourse Media
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Best Blog or Online-Only Column
GOLD: Tim Caulfield: The Cure, Policy Options
SILVER: Presidential Poll Tracker, CBC News
Best News Coverage: National & International
GOLD: Fentanyl Crisis, The Globe and Mail
SILVER: What’s in your weed?, The Globe and Mail
Best News Coverage: Local & Provincial
GOLD: The Frontline of Fentanyl, CBC.ca/bc
SILVER: When A Tree Falls, The Globe and Mail
Best Feature Article: Short
GOLD: Crichton Farm, The Globe and Mail
SILVER: Online Scam Artists Are Using Hoaxes About Terrorist Attacks To Make Money, BuzzFeed Canada
Best Feature Article: Long
GOLD: Graffiti Kids, The Globe and Mail
SILVER: Crocodiles Rising, Hakai Magazine
Best Personal Essay
GOLD: The Widowhood Effect, The Globe and Mail
SILVER: A Grief Like This, Hazlitt
Best Arts & Culture Story
GOLD: North Exposure, The Globe and Mail
SILVER: What We Lose When POC Entertainers Crack Into The Mainstream, BuzzFeed Canada
Best Service Feature: Lifestyle
GOLD: 2016 Wedding Trends Guide, Weddingbells
SILVER: The Globe 100: Best Books of the Year, The Globe and Mail
Best Service Feature: Family, Health & Careers
GOLD: Saving Sid, CBC News
SILVER: It’s Never Been Less Safe To Try Out Drugs, VICE
Best Online Video: Short
GOLD: How the powerful opioid fentanyl kills: A CBC News explainer, CBC News
SILVER: 15 Fun Facts About Sperm, Today’s Parent
Best Online Video: Feature
GOLD: Toddler with paralysis zips around in homemade wheelchair, The Canadian Press
SILVER: The Right to Roam, Hakai Magazine
Best Online Video: Mini-Doc
GOLD: Salute, HuffPost Canada
SILVER: Growing Pains, The Globe and Mail
Best Podcast
GOLD: Colour Code, The Globe and Mail
SILVER: Missing & Murdered: Who Killed Alberta Williams, CBC News
Best Digital Design
GOLD: torontolife.com, Toronto Life
SILVER: U.S. election: Live results, CBC News
Best Social Storytelling
GOLD: Crichton Farm, The Globe and Mail
Best Digital Initiative
GOLD: Why Diversity, Ryerson Review of Journalism
SILVER: Allez-vous être remplacé par un robot? Demandez-le à… notre robot!, L’actualité
WINNERS HIGHLIGHTS
16 different publications received Digital Publishing Awards this year, including 10 publications which received their first-ever award.
Canadian Art, The Canadian Press, Discourse Media, Hazlitt, HuffPost Canada, L’actualité, Policy Options, Ryerson Review of Journalism, VICE and Wedding Bells all won their first Digital Publishing Award this year.
CBC News, BuzzFeed Canada, Hakai Magazine, Today’s Parent, The Globe and Mail and Toronto Life won Digital Publishing Awards for the second year.
Naël Shiab won the inaugural Emerging Excellence Award, as well as the Silver Medal in Best Digital Initiative for his L’actualité piece, “Allez-vous être remplacé par un robot? Demandez-le à… notre robot!”
The Globe and Mail’s “Crichton Farm” story won Gold in two categories: Best Feature Article: Short and Best Social Storytelling.
Toronto Life won the Gold Medal in Best Digital Design for the second year in a row.
The leading publication in this year’s Digital Publishing Awards is The Globe and Mail, winning a total of 12 awards, including 8 Gold and 4 Silver. They also received Honourable Mention in General Excellence in Digital Publishing: Large Publications.
LiiBeth, National Observer, YMC: Motherhood Unfiltered, FILLER Magazine, The Tyee, Daily Xtra, The Walrus, NUVO Magazine, GUTS Magazine, Maclean’s, NOW Magazine, Global News, Chatelaine, Sportsnet, urbania.ca, Fashion Magazine, and UBC School of Journalism all received Honourable Mention.
ABOUT THE DIGITAL PUBLISHING AWARDS
This year, the Digital Publishing Awards expanded from 14 to 21 categories to better reflect the growth, innovation, and diversity in Canadian digital publishing content and creation. A total of 75 Canadian digital publications participated in the DPAs, submitting the best of their digital content, design and innovation from the past year for consideration in 21 awards categories. 67 individuals volunteered their time, their expertise, and their passion for digital publishing in serving as judges for this year’s awards. They nominated 85 entries from 34 different digital publications for this year’s awards.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The Digital Publishing Awards gratefully acknowledges the support of the Government of Canada and the Ontario Arts Council, as well as its generous partners including Candescent, Very Good Studios, Vividata, Impresa Communications Ltd., CNW Group and Goetz Storytelling.
The NMAF offers its sincere thanks to the highly skilled professionals who generously contributed their time and expertise as judges of the Digital Publishing Awards competition.