The 6th annual Digital Publishing Awards are now closed for submission, save for two special awards—the Digital Publishing Leadership Award and the Emerging Excellence Award.
The Digital Publishing Leadership Award recognizes and celebrates an individual who has made significant contributions to the industry. Writers, visual creators, designers, developers, publishers, and other digital publishing professionals are all eligible, as long as they have demonstrated leadership, inspiration, creativity, and achievement. Nominations should come from three or more colleagues (here are the full nomination requirements). Last year’s winner was Dmitry Beniaminov—check out his acceptance speech here. Prior to that, the award has gone to Kathy Vey, Brodie Fenlon, and Kenny Yum.
Young professionals working in the digital field, who have demonstrated exceptional craft and promise, can be put forth for the Emerging Excellence Award. Nominations for this award should come from one or more colleagues or mentors. Previous winners include Jane Lytvynenko, Sofia Misenheimer, Elizabeth Melito, and Nael Shiab.
Award sponsored by the Reader’s Digest Foundation Prix commandité par la Fondation Reader’s Digest
The National Media Awards Foundation congratulates Dmitry Beniaminov, the 2020 winner of the Digital Publishing Leadership Award. This award celebrates a creator whose career contributions to Canadian digital publishing deserve formal recognition, and it is the Digital Publishing Awards’ highest individual distinction.
Beniaminov is a York University graduate, with a Bachelor in Computer Science/Engineering and Psychology, and is certified with the Interactive Advertising Bureau of Canada (IAB). Since graduating, Beniaminov has accumulated nearly 20 years of experience working as a technology consultant and digital marketing advisor and, as of 2016, offers his services via, Pixel Studioz, his web design firm.
“Dmitry was a pioneer when publishers were evolving into the digital space,” writes Margo Bock, a consultant at Margo Bock Media Solutions. A pioneer, and a “godsend,” according to Joyce Byrne who, in 2019, worked with Dmitry on the Avenue Calgary websites and digital ads. “He’s a great communicator and an even better technology expert. He always delivered what he promised, and then some.”
Tanja Hutter, Online Manager for Canada’s History Society—who also worked with Beniaminov in 2019—refers to him as their “Google Guy.” He was originally brought on board for SEM, though Hutter quickly realized “there was no shortage of topics that we [could pick] his brain about: from above-the-clouds overall digital strategy down to in-the-weeds tweaking of ad execution.”
It seems many of Canada’s digital publishers have picked Beniaminov’s brain; he’s worked on projects for The Walrus, Running Magazine, Toronto Botanical Garden, Cycling Magazine, Avenue Calgary, Electric Autonomy, Canadaland, Outdoor Canada, Cottage Life, Canadian Living, Elle Canada, The Hockey News, Toronto Life, Fashion Magazine, Wedding Bells, and Quill and Quire. Outside of publishing, he’s consulted for the University of Toronto, Seneca, Ad-Server start-ups, and Autism Services portals. Beniaminov’s testimonials make clear why his client base is so wide-ranging. “He’s helpful, kind, positive and eager, and he never breaks a sweat, including and especially when those around him have every right to be freaking out,” says David Topping, Newsroom Director, Newsletters at Torstar. “In the two years I worked with him, I was consistently impressed at his ability to keep so much in his brain, and how generous he was with sharing it.”
This generosity extends to Beniaminov’s ongoing volunteerism. He contributes to organizations and community-based projects, which have included PEN Canada, the Canadian Society of Magazine Editors, and the Movember Foundation.
Those who nominated Beniaminov for this award were also quick to point out the impact of his work: “He has helped all of our sites grow from a small web presence to traffic of about two million monthly page views,” says Sam Cohen, Publisher at Gripped Publishing Inc. Bock echoes this: “He led us through all the digital opportunities that we could develop for the audience, and in turn, convert to advertising revenue. He had a keen understanding of what digital audiences want and how to monetize it, which was much needed to grow division revenue as print advertising was shifting to digital.”
It’s not just Beniaminov’s clients who recognize his talent—he is an award-winning creator, with accolades from IAB, the National Magazine Awards, and the Digital Publishing Awards.
A pioneer, a godsend, a Google Guy—a clear leader in the field of Canadian digital publishing whose creativity and dedication is inspiring. For this, the National Media Awards Foundation is proud to present the Digital Publishing Leadership Award to Dmitry Beniaminov. Our sincerest congratulations, Dmitry!
Hey, digital publishers—do you have a team member who has made outstanding career contributions that deserve recognition? Consider nominating them for the 2020 Digital Publishing Leadership Award!
This award may be given to a writer, visual creator, designer, developer, publisher, or other digital publishing professional. It costs only $25 to submit a nomination, and the deadline is March 2, 2020.
How to Nominate a Colleague
Entries must consist of:
A letter of introduction (PDF) from a publisher, editor, art director, or other colleague, which should include:
a brief bio of the candidate;
a summary of their career achievements; and
links to specific work and media to be considered by the jury.
The submission must also include supporting letters or testimonials from at least two (2) other colleagues.
The entire submission should consist of a single PDF file not more than 10 pages in length.
Judging Process
Judging for this award is done by members of the NMAF Board of Directors, alongside senior members of the Canadian digital publishing industry. Please note that we keep applications under consideration for two (2) years.
Previous winners have included Kathy Vey (2019), Brodie Fenlon (2018), and Kenny Yum (2017).
As the month comes to a close, so does the Digital Publishing Awards’ call for entries: Friday, February 1st is your last chance to submit your work to the awards. Entries will be judged by three-member juries, made up of Canada’s top digital publishing talent. You can read more about the judging process here.
For categories, there are 23 to choose from: with this expansive lineup, Canadian writers, editors, art directors, graphic designers, web developers, photographers, illustrators, and videographers, are sure to find a good fit for their work. Best of all, Gold winners in individual categories will take home a $500 cash prize!
The entire submission process takes about ten minutes. Start by clicking here to access our online portal. There, you’ll enter the details of your submission(s) and pay the entry fees. Easy!
The National Media Awards Foundation (NMAF) is proud to announce that the CBC’s Senior Director of Daily News and Bureaus Brodie Fenlon is this year’s recipient of the Digital Publishing Leadership Award, which honours an individual whose career contributions to Canadian digital publishing deserve recognition and celebration. Brodie will be presented with his award – the highest individual distinction from the Digital Publishing Award program – at the DPA Soirée on May 29th.
Brodie’s career in journalism began after graduating from Western University’s journalism program, when he started working as a newspaper reporter for the London Free Press and the Toronto Sun. In 2007, Brodie switched from print to digital journalism, taking a position as digital editor at The Globe and Mail. Angus Frame, the Senior Vice President of Digital Products and New Product Development at Torstar Corp., says he takes “special pride in being the person who brought Brodie into the world of digital news (…).” Angus goes on to say that Brodie was “one of the best hires I have ever made.”
Brodie spent four years at The Globe and Mailbefore switching gears and becoming the Managing Editor of News at The Huffington Post Canada; there, he played a strategic role in launching the first international edition of the U.S. website. Angus Frame calls Brodie a “transformative leader at The Huffington Post and now at CBC,” as Brodie has since joined Canada’s national public broadcaster’s team, overhauling their digital news strategy. He “has been a force of nature since the day he stepped through the door,” notes Mari Ito, Executive Producer of Daily News at CBC News. Today, Brodie is the Senior Director of Daily News and Bureaus for theCBC.
At the CBC, Brodie has overseen the launch of new iOS and Android apps, the mobile site, and a number of interactive tools and templates. Under Brodie’s leadership,CBCNews.ca won last year’s Digital Publishing Award for General Excellence.
“He is a marvel,” says Greg Reame, Managing Editor of Daily News at CBC News. “With no apparent understanding of quantum physics, Brodie manages to warp the space-time continuum. It’s the only way to explain how he crams a week’s worth of industry and initiative into each 24-hour day.”
Brodie’s determination to drive digital innovation is lauded by his peers, with Angus Frame describing Brodie as an “incredibly positive and galvanizing force that can transform a staid or negative culture into a creative and optimistic one.” Mari Ito cites Brodie’s “boundless energy, positivity, and knowledge that helped transform CBC News into a place that not only embraces digital, but does so enthusiastically,” while Sasha Nagy (Managing Editor, Video at HuffPost Canada) highlights Brodie’s “enormous hunger to learn, to absorb all he could in order to untap the potential that digital media presented.”
Brodie’s pursuit for digital innovation is matched with a desire to build camaraderie in the newsroom. “He has been able to lead his newsrooms through challenging times and difficult stories, never losing their full support,” says Sasha Nagy, of Brodie’s time at The Huffington Post Canada. Clearly, this is a factor of Brodie’s leadership that he carries with him from newsroom to newsroom, as Mario Ito notes that, “despite his harrowingly packed schedule he makes time to be out on the [CBC] newsroom floor, checking in and connecting with his staff. Whenever anyone asks for one-on-one time with him, he makes it happen. When people are stressed, confused or worried, they know they can go to Brodie because he listens.”
Though his career path, brimming with professional achievements, is in itself impressive, Brodie’s peers were all careful to note his kind, generous personality. He is “genetically incapable of meanness” says Greg Reaume, while Sasha Nagy recognizes his knack for balancing work and family, remaining the “most decent journalist [he has] ever had the pleasure of working with.”
“Brodie is the kind of leader who inspires the people working for him and around him to be better,” says Mari Ito.
For his commitment to digital innovation through commendable leadership skills, the NMAF is honoured to present Brodie Fenlon with the 2018 Digital Publishing Leadership Award.
Nominations for the 2018 Digital Publishing Awards will be announced tomorrow at 10am EST. The Digital Publishing Leadership Award will be presented at the 2018 DPA Soirée on May 29th in Toronto. Tickets will be available for purchase on April 26th atdigitalpublishingawards.ca.
