News organizations and their journalists are encouraged to participate in the annual Michener Award competition. The entry deadline for the 2012 Michener Award is Friday, February 21, 2014. The judging committee will begin accepting entries on January 1, 2014.
The Michener Award is presented for journalism that makes a significant impact on the public good. To be selected as a finalist, a news organization must be able to demonstrate that its entry achieved identifiable results. The results may include improvements in public policy, ethical standards, corporate governance or the lives of Canadians.
Previous winners have been chosen on the basis of hard-hitting reporting and journalistic professionalism. Winning subjects have ranged from the misuse of public or private funds, to irregularities in the justice and police systems, electoral abuses and mercury poisoning. The 2006 Award went to the Prince George Citizen for a series that significantly improved the safety of logging-truck drivers. The 2007 Award shared by La Presse and The Globe and Mail for reports on the treatment of Afghan detainees led to an inquiry and a new agreement allowing Canadian investigators access to detainees and the shuffling of the Defence minister out of his position for his handling of the issue. The 2008 award shared by CBC/Radio Canada and The Canadian Press was given for a series that analyzed and reported on the use of Taser stun guns. The Victoria Times Colonist won the 2011 Michener Award for reporting on a B.C. government policy that reduced support for people with developmental disabilities. (see 2011 Award)
Entries for the Michener Award must be based on material from Canadian print or broadcast organizations or Canadian online news sites that adhere to the journalistic principles of accuracy and fairness. The Award is given to an organization, including a regularly published web site, rather than to an individual.
Size is no barrier to success. Previous winners have ranged from national networks and daily newspapers to weeklies and periodicals. The judges are required to take into account the resources available to support the entry.
Journalism that is published or broadcast in one calendar year may be entered in the Michener Awards competition the following calendar year if, in the judgment of the organization, it made a significant impact the following year. This clause is included in the rules to ensure that journalism produced late in the year and achieving identifiable results beyond the posted deadlines is fairly and fully considered in the competition.
The contributions of individual journalists to the entries selected as finalists are recognized by invitations to, and participation in, the prestigious annual Awards Ceremony at Rideau Hall in Ottawa.
The 2014 Award, to be presented by the Governor General, will be the 44th since Governor General Roland Michener established the annual competition in 1970.
How to Submit an Entry
A senior editor or executive must submit the entry on behalf of a news organization. Only stories published or broadcast in 2013 will be accepted.
All candidates must include five (5) copies of a full written explanation of the entry, including a description of the public service performed and the results that the entry generated. It is helpful to describe the resources that were available to the entry. Appropriate supporting evidence is welcome, including testimonials from independent and disinterested sources.
Print entries must also include 5 copies of the published reports in their original form, or in PDF, or a photocopy of the entry as it appeared in the newspaper. If tearsheets are submitted you will require only one tearsheet and 4 full-sized copies of same.
Television and radio entries must also include 5 CD's or DVD's containing the reporting that is being submitted.
Journalism that has been published online must also include five (5) hard copies of the submission printed on standard copy paper. The submitted material must also be available on an active URL. Directions to the URL must accompany the entry.
All entries must include a registration fee of $50. Payment may be by cheque or money order (no GST required). Credit cards are not accepted.
Need Help? Check our FAQ's for more details about entry rules.
During January 2014 and up to the deadline only (February 21, 2014), entries for the Michener Award should be sent to:
Michener Awards Foundation
c/o The Ottawa Citizen
1101 Baxter Road. Box, 5020
Ottawa, Ontario
K2C 3M4