Presentation of the Michener Award

His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada, presented the Michener Award for outstanding public service in journalism, and the Michener-Deacon Fellowships during a ceremony at Rideau Hall.

The Michener Award was launched in 1970, under the auspices of the late Right Honourable Roland Michener, Governor General from 1967 to 1974. The daughter of the former Governor General, Ms. Diana Michener Schatz and her husband Roy Schatz, were at the ceremony. They are seen here (on the left) with Their Excellencies and Mr. Russell Mills.

Mr. Harold Munro, Editor-in-Chief, was representing The Vancouver Sun. The series "From Care to Where?" exposed the heartbreaking experiences and structural disadvantages foster children face when they turn 19 and must leave the care of the province of British Columbia. Through personal narratives and official data, the two-month investigation showed huge gaps in support and, as a result of “aging-out”, many of these youth ended up homeless, unemployed, in jail, involved in drug abuse or living in poverty.

Mr. Stephen Meurice, Editor-in-Chief, was representing The Canadian Press. For decades Canadians have assumed elections were run fairly and impartially, with little opportunity to manipulate the results. The 2011 election and subsequent investigation of robocalls and other tactics undercut that belief. When the Conservative government introduced its Fair Elections Act to address problems highlighted after the 2011 vote, The Canadian Press (CP) began an intensive examination of the proposed legislation. Committed to exploring and explaining the new and complicated rules that would be introduced, CP revealed that the government had manipulated evidence from experts to suggest support for its proposals.

Ms. Marissa Nelson, Senior Director, Digital Media CBC News & Centres, was representing CBC North. CBC North examined the troubling death of an infant in the remote Nunavut hamlet of Cape Dorset to highlight the unique health-care challenges facing Canada’s most northern communities. Nunavut struggles with a chronic shortage of nurses who provide most of the health care in isolated communities. This shortage makes it difficult for residents to speak out when they have serious concerns about the care provided by a specific individual. It took the death of a three-month-old boy, the courage of a young Inuit mother to speak out, and the persistence of CBC North to shed light on a problem that the government preferred to ignore.

Ms. Alison Broddle, Executive Producer, was representing the CBC. What began as a story on CBC about complaints that a McDonald’s fast-food restaurant had hired foreign workers instead of Canadians who had applied for the same positions continues to attract national headlines. Through sustained coverage on television, radio and online, CBC demonstrated how a decades-old program designed largely to import workers with specific technical and scientific training had become an easy and less costly way for employers to fill low-skilled, minimum-wage jobs, in some cases at the expense of long-time employees.

Ms. Carole Beaulieu, Editor-in-chief, was representing L'actualité who was a finalist with a eight-month investigation that revealed a broken chain of command when it comes to sexual assault and harassment in the military. Crimes sexuels dans l’armée garnered swift response from senior government and military officials.

The Globe and Mail chronicled the devastating legacy of thalidomide on children who were born in the 1950s and 60s with severe physical defects because doctors had prescribed the drug to their mothers for morning sickness. While the system was overhauled to prevent a similar tragedy, the survivors were marked by a lapse in public policy and all but forgotten. With great sensitivity, the series gave survivors and their families a national voice as they spoke of the growing physical, mental and financial toll on their lives.

Mr. David Walmsley, Editor-in-Chief of The Globe and Mail, proudly accepted the 2014 Michener Award. Recognizing outstanding and unbiased public service in journalism, the award is presented to news organizations rather than to individuals: newspapers, broadcasting stations and networks, news agencies, periodicals, magazines and online journalism sources.

Robert Cribb, investigative reporter with The Toronto Star, received the Michener-Deacon Fellowship for Journalism Education. Mr. Cribb will use the fellowship to develop a detailed plan to connect the country’s major journalism schools from coast to coast to coast, with the goal of researching, reporting and publishing ambitious stories of national scope on matters of vital public interest, in partnership with major media outlets. Dedicated to the advancement of the education of Canadian journalists, the fellowship supports a mature journalist-in-residence at a recognized Canadian school of journalism for one semester. The purpose of the fellowship is to enhance the education of both the applicant and the students enrolled in the journalism program.

Each year, the governor general honours laureates at a ceremony at Rideau Hall. Roland Michener’s successors have graciously adopted and maintained a personal interest in the Michener Awards Foundation and its commitment to Canadian journalistic excellence.

Marie-France Bélanger, Radio-Canada journalist, received the Michener-Deacon Fellowship for Investigative Journalism. She will examine the use of technology in the classroom, in the province of Quebec. This award was created to encourage excellence in investigative print, broadcast and online journalism. The winning fellow is expected to undertake a project that aspires to the criteria of the Michener Award, with emphasis on identifiable benefits for the public good, improvements in public policy, ethical standards, corporate governance or the lives of Canadians.

Mr. Russell Mills, President of the Michener Awards Foundation, also delivered remarks.

The Michener Awards Foundation celebrates and promotes excellence in Canadian public service journalism.

During his remarks, the Governor General said: "Despite everything that’s changed in the news industry in recent years—and that’s a lot—the basic principles of good journalism have not changed. And they won’t. Journalistic ethics and integrity will never go out of style. I thank and congratulate all of you—journalists, editors, producers, teachers, students alike—for your dedication to those principles, and to Canada."

The 2014 Michener Award winning team: The Globe and Mail. From left to right, front row: Michelle Siu, Mercédes Benegbi, Their Excellencies, David Walmsley, Ingrid Peritz. Back row: Dennis Choquette, Philip Crawley, Sinclair Stewart, Steven Chase, Russell Mills.