2011 WINNERS TABLE OF CONTENTS GENERAL EXCELLENCE 2-3 CLASS 1011 CIRCULATION UP TO 1249 GENERAL EXCELLENCE 4-5 CLASS 1012 CIRCULATION 1,250 TO 1,999 GENERAL EXCELLENCE 6-7 CLASS 1013 CIRCULATION 2,000 TO 2,999 GENERAL EXCELLENCE 8-9 CLASS 1014 CIRCULATION 3,000 TO 3,999 GENERAL EXCELLENCE 10-11 CLASS 1015 CIRCULATION 4,000 TO 6,499 GENERAL EXCELLENCE 12-13 CLASS 1016 CIRCULATION 6,500 TO 12,499 GENERAL EXCELLENCE 14-15 CLASS 1017 CIRCULATION 12,500 TO 24,999 GENERAL EXCELLENCE 16-17 CLASS 1018 CIRCULATION 25,000 AND OVER 00 AND OVER 17
Class 1011 Circulation up to 1249 BEST FRONT PAGE BEST EDITORIAL PAGE BLUE RIBBONS Judge: Joyce Carlson Barriere (BC) North Thompson Star/Journal Blue Mountains (ON) Courier-Herald Bowen Island (BC) Bowen Island Undercurrent Clearwater (BC) The North Thompson Times Gull Lake (SK) Advance Whitewood Herald Whitewood, SK The North Thompson Times Clearwater, BC Placentia (NL) The Charter Whitewood (SK) Herald Bowen Island Undercurrent Bowen Island, BC The Charter Placentia, NL Courier-Herald Blue Mountains, ON Whitewood Herald Whitewood, SK
Class 1011 Circulation up to 1249 Judge: Joyce Carlson BEST ALL-ROUND NEWSPAPER Bowen Island Undercurrent Bowen Island, BC Courier-Herald Blue Mountains, ON The North Thompson Times Clearwate, BC It was a pleasure to judge the smallest circulation newspaper in our industry family. In spite of having smaller staffs, the papers are working to provide information to their communities. Coverage of the arts made a difference in judging this category as some papers had none within their pages. I know there are art-related events happening in your towns, maybe they just happened in different weeks. A recommendation for the writers: once your story has been written, go back and rewrite the lead. So many stories began with The and the actual lead, that would capture the reader s attention, is buried in the first paragraph. Make it a point not to have a story begin with The and your leads will be much stronger. Try it. Also watch those commas. Make sure you use them properly. They have a habit of creeping in where they don t belong. Strive also for consistency in capitalization and use of titles. Photography remains a challange for this category as only three managed to earn more than 10 points out of 15. Once this competition booklet is in your hands, you have eight months to focus on having better photos within the pages of your papers. Always look for better ways to present information with a photograph. Print quality for all entries was very good.
Class 1012 Circulation 1,250 to 1,999 BEST FRONT PAGE BEST EDITORIAL PAGE BLUE RIBBONS Judge: Stephen Robertson Enfield (NS) The Weekly Press Fort Macleod (AB) The Macleod Gazette Fort Smith/Fort Chipewyan (NT) Slave River Journal Gravenhurst (ON) Gravenhurst Banner Happy Valley-Goose Bay (NL) The Labradorian The Labradorian Happy Valley-Goose Bay, NL The Macleod Gazette Macleod, AB Meaford (ON) Express Vulcan (AB) Vulcan Advocate Slave River Journal Fort Smith/Fort Chipewyan, NT Vulcan Advocate Vulcan, AB The Weekly Press Enfield, NS South Peace News High Prairie, SK
Class 1012 Circulation 1,250 to 1,999 BEST ALL-ROUND NEWSPAPER Judge: Stephen Robertson Gravenhurst Banner Gravenhurst, ON The Weekly Press Enfield, NS All the newspapers in this circulation class are doing a very good job of covering their communities. The hard work that these small staffs put into their papers is clear and shows in the quality of the writing, design, production and advertising throughout the entries in this class. The Fort Smith/Chipewyan Slave River Journal came out on top because of the attention they give to all aspects of their paper very striking front page, solid journalism, good writing and nice design. The Gravenhurst Banner demonstrates excellent, in-depth, well-written community coverage and produces a wonderful BIG paper. The Enfield Weekly Press layout, use of colour, reproduction and photography are outstanding and it is very solid editorially as well. Slave River Journal Fort Smith/Fort Chipewyan, NT
Class 1013 Circulation 2,000 to 2,999 BEST FRONT PAGE BEST EDITORIAL PAGE BLUE RIBBONS Judge: Laila Michell Hanna (AB) Hanna Herald Hay River (NT) Hub Kincardine (ON) The Kincardine Independent Lac La Biche (AB) Post Moosomin (SK) World-Spectator Parry Sound (ON) Beacon Star Taber Times Taber, AB Hanna Herald Hanna, AB The Williams Lake Tribune Williams Lake, BC The Kincardine Independent Kincardine, ON Port Aux Basques (NL) The Gulf News Shelburne/Barrington (NS) Coast Guard St. Stephen (NB) Courier Weekend Stettler (AB) Stettler Independent Taber (AB) Taber Times Beacon Star Parry Sound, ON Lac La Biche Post Lac La Biche, AB Williams Lake (BC) The Williams Lake Tribune Windsor (NS) Hants Journal
Class 1013 Circulation 2,000 to 2,999 BEST ALL-ROUND NEWSPAPER Judge: Laila Michell Taber Times Taber, AB Hants Journal Windsor, NS On first look at the entrants into this category, it looked like a hard group to judge. All entries were good reflections of their communities. But The Williams Lake Tribune stood out. The paper s front page gave a complete story and a concise index to lead into the inside pages. The flow of the paper made it easy to read through each page of good photos, stories and design. The structure of the paper made it easy to see what type of story was about to be read, whether it was news, community, or sports. The Williams Lake Tribune Williams Lake, BC
Class 1014 Circulation 3,000 to 3,999 BEST FRONT PAGE BEST EDITORIAL PAGE BLUE RIBBONS Judge: Teresa Bird Bracebridge (ON) Examiner Jasper (AB) The Fitzhugh Kentville (NS) Kings County Advertiser Parry Sound (ON) North Star Powell River (BC) The Powell River Peak Examiner Bracebridge, ON The Chief Squamish, BC Salmon Arm (BC) Salmon Arm Observer Salt Spring Island (BC) Gulf Islands Driftwood The Fitzhugh Jasper, AB Gulf Islands Driftwood Salt Spring Island, BC Squamish (BC) The Chief Westlock (AB) News Woodstock (NB) Bugle Observer Bugle Observer Woodstock, NB Westlock News Westlock, AB
Class 1014 Circulation 3,000 to 3,999 BEST ALL-ROUND NEWSPAPER Judge: Teresa Bird Examiner Bracebridge, ON Gulf Islands Driftwood Salt Spring Island, BC The range of coverage across the country was generally strong in all these entries. It was interesting to see how many issues small communities have in common. Unfortunately, good quality active photos were sadly lacking in many editions and grey pages without art are still too common. The newspapers that stood out were the ones that had strong writing, engaging stories and active photos that were well played. A well-defined design and consistent clean layout made these papers attractive and easy to read. The Fitzhugh is particularly attractive with lots of colour and sharp print quality that sets off the fabulous photos and clean lay out. The Bracebridge Examiner knows how to lay out a front page, with great photos, faces and engaging stories. Photos and art break up the grey inside. For 50 years the Gulf Islands Driftwood has been reflecting the eclectic spirit of the islands with strong writing, great editorials and excellent design. The Arts and Entertainment coverage is particularly well done. The Fitzhugh Jasper, AB
Class 1015 Circulation 4,000 to 6,499 BEST FRONT PAGE BEST EDITORIAL PAGE BLUE RIBBONS Judge: Jason Lyon Antigonish (NS) The Casket Banff (AB) Crag & Canyon Canmore (AB) Leader Carbonear (NL) The Compass Clarenville (NL) The Packet Huntsville (ON) Huntsville Forester Nanaimo (BC) Nanaimo Daily News Nunavut News North Nunavut Mountaineer Rocky Mountain House, AB New Liskeard (ON) Temiskaming Speaker Nunavut (NU) Nunavut News North Crag & Canyon Banff, AB Kings County Record Sussex, NB Rimbey (AB) Review Rocky Mountain House (AB) Mountaineer Sussex (NB) Kings County Record The Wainwright Star Wainwright, AB Vanguard Yarmouth, NS Wainwright (AB) The Wainwright Star Yarmouth (NS) Vanguard
Class 1015 Circulation 4,000 to 6,499 BEST ALL-ROUND NEWSPAPER Judge: Jason Lyon Vanguard Yarmouth, NS Kings County Record Sussex, NB First place: Nunavut News North: This paper stood out as a winner even before you pick it up. A very strong front page that is clean and crisp, complemented by great photography. The inside pages reveal interesting content accompanied by photography that tells a story as well as any written article. The challenge of offering content in more than one language does not seem to affect the overall layout and design. The North News is a great example of adapting to new ways of newspaper presentation very well. Second place: Yarmouth Vanguard: A clean looking newspaper with great front-page photography, clean layout and design and a good understanding of their audience. It is clear that the overall look of the paper is a big consideration when putting together the paper each week. Design combined with a broad variety of content makes this a great example of what a community newspaper should be. Third place: Sussex Kings County Record: What I noticed about this paper was consistent strength in most of the scoring categories we looked at. The range of content was excellent with good spot news coverage. The overall layout and design was good, a stronger front page and more focus on photography could propel this into a first place position next year. Nunavut News North Nunavut
Class 1016 Circulation 6,500 to 12,499 Judge: Peter McCully BEST FRONT PAGE BEST EDITORIAL PAGE BLUE RIBBONS Bridgewater (NS) Bridgewater Bulletin Canmore/Kananaskis/Banff(AB) Rocky Mountain Outlook Mission (BC) Mission Record Northwest Territories (NT) NWT News North Oak Bay (BC) Oak Bay News Sechelt/Gibsons (BC) Coast Reporter Question Whistler, BC Question Whistler, BC Steinbach (MB) The Carillon Stouffville (ON) Sun/Tribune Rocky Mountain Outlook Canmore/Kananaskis/Banff, AB Rocky Mountain Outlook Canmore/Kananaskis/Banff, AB Strathmore (AB) Standard Wetaskiwin (AB) Times Advertiser Whistler (BC) Question Coast Reporter Sechelt/Gibsons, BC Coast Reporter Sechelt/Gibsons, BC
Class 1016 Circulation 6,500 to 12,499 BEST ALL-ROUND NEWSPAPER Judge: Peter McCully Rocky Mountain Outlook Canmore/Kananaskis/Banff, AB Coast Reporter Sechelt/Gibsons, BC Question Whistler, BC After reviewing the 19 papers in this category, it was obvious from the stories, photos, letters, contests, etc. that they all play an important role in their respective communities. Graphically, there were a handful of newspapers that rose above the others. One general comment concerns photography. Often photos were played too small, one good photo played large can carry several pages. Many papers with smaller formatted pages would benefit from modular ad sizing. First Place: The Whistler Question Chocked full of news, sports and entertainment, and presented in a graphically pleasing and easy to read format, the Whistler Question leads the pack. To say the Question pays attention to detail is like saying Henry Ford made a car. Second Place: Rock Mountain Outlook The use of color and feature pages by the Rocky Mountain Outlook added to a well rounded community newspaper. Quality printing and stock. Third Place: Coast Reporter The staff of the Coast Reporter has created a strong opinion section, good use of color in advertising features and solid graphic elements. A very strong read, nipping at the heels of the Outlook.
Class 1017 Circulation 12,500 to 24,999 Judge: Leith Orr BEST FRONT PAGE BEST EDITORIAL PAGE BLUE RIBBONS Airdrie (AB) Airdrie Echo Courtenay Comox Valley (BC) Comox Valley Record Duncan (BC) Cowichan News Leader Pictorial Dundas (ON) Dundas Star News Kamloops (BC) The Daily News Midland/ Penetanguishene (ON) Mirror New Westminster (BC) The Record Delta Optimist Delta, BC Cowichan News Leader Pictorial Duncan, BC Okotoks (AB) Western Wheel Orangeville (ON) Banner Parksville/Qualicum Beach (BC) The News Airdrie Echo Airdrie, AB Dundas Star News Dundas, ON St. Albert (AB) Saint City News Westshore (BC) Goldstream News Comox Valley Record Courtenay Comox Valley, BC The News Parksville/Qualicum Beach, BC
Class 1017 Circulation 12,500 to 24,999 BEST ALL-ROUND NEWSPAPER Judge: Leith Orr Cowichan News Leader Pictorial Duncan, BC Airdrie Echo Airdrie, AB Best All-Round Newspaper - Okotoks Western Wheel Excellent all encompassing newspaper offering a wide range of coverage from community events, local arts/culture, business and education. Opinions include local and international editorials, as well as commentary from readers. Excellent sports coverage. Stories are longer and more in-depth. A pleasure to read. Best Front Page - Delta Optimist Excellent front page with several eye catching focal points. I was sold on the front page the minute that I looked at the facial expressions of the two young ladies. Job well done. Best Editorial Page - Cowichan News Leader Pictorial Excellent editorial pages with lots of opinions, especially from this newspaper on issues in their community. Very attractive design with lots of good focal points. Western Wheel Okotoks, AB
Class 1018 Circulation 25,000 and over Judge: Stephanie Matches BEST FRONT PAGE BEST EDITORIAL PAGE BLUE RIBBONS News Leader Burnaby, BC North Shore Outlook North and West Vancouver, BC Oakville Beaver Oakville, ON The Vancouver Courier Vancouver, BC The Now Surrey/North Delta/White Rock, BC Waterloo Chronicle Waterloo, ON Burnaby (BC) Burnaby Now Burnaby (BC) News Leader Chilliwack (BC) Chilliwack Times Chilliwack (BC) The Chilliwack Progress North & West Vancouver (BC) North Shore Outlook North & West Vancouver (BC) North Shore News North York (ON) North York Mirror Oakville (ON) Beaver Saanich (BC) Saanich News South Surrey (BC) Peace Arch News St. Albert (AB) Gazette Surrey/North Delta (BC) The Leader Surrey/North Delta/White Rock (BC) The Now Vancouver (BC) The Vancouver Courier - West Side Vernon (BC) The Morning Star Victoria (BC) Victoria News Waterloo (ON) Waterloo Chronicle
Class 1018 Circulation 25,000 and over BEST ALL-ROUND NEWSPAPER Judge: Stephanie Matches North Shore Outlook North and West Vancouver, BC St. Albert Gazette St. Albert, AB North Shore News North and West Vancouver, BC This is an extremely difficult category to judge. Each community newspaper has attributes that make them excellent contenders for the category of general excellence. From the January submissions speaking about our Canadian pride for the 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games to the September issues that speak to Terry Fox and his long and emotional journey. Canadian community newspapers are clearly alive and well and are still imparting the best news coverage available to Canadians. The North Shore News stands out as a paper that embodies its community. From the compelling front page photography and story, through the many interesting and complete sections, to the clean and easy to navigate classifieds. The uncluttered forward news section is appealing and the broad community coverage is entertaining to all age demographics. The North Shore Outlook has grown to be a solid contender in the general excellence category. With an attractive front page, great use of colour throughout and great layout and design, this paper deserves to be in 2nd place. As the first place winner in class 1017 last year, the St. Albert Gazette rounds out the top 3 in its new circulation class. This 50-year-old paper embodies a true community newspaper look and feel with broad range of coverage. The cover is clean and visually appealing. Its news, sections and features help to make this an interesting read.