2022/2023 MEDIA AWARD WINNERS

Amnesty International Canada is thrilled to announce the winners of its 28th annual Media Awards, a celebration of the best human rights reporting by Canada-based journalists and Canadian journalists working abroad.

Among the winners are richly reported, expertly told stories digging into the Wet’suwet’en Nation’s struggle to defend its rights and territory, the heartrending plight of a Hazara Afghani family dreaming of freedom and safety in Canada, and the bewildering disappearance and death, and growing legacy, of human rights defender Karima Baloch.

Every year we invite reporters, editors, student journalists and media outlets across Canada to send their best human-rights-focused work.

Amnesty International Canada will hand out the honours on Thursday, October 19 in Toronto at the organisation’s first in-person Media Awards ceremony since 2019.

Local/Alternative Media

“The last of the untamed: Wedzin Kwa and the Wet’suwet’en fight to save her,” Brandi Morin, with photographs by Amber Bracken, Ricochet.

Long-Form Audio

Ep. 1, “The death of an icon,” The Kill List, Mary Lynk, Ilina Ghosh, and the team at CBC Podcasts.

Mixed Media

“The complicated truth about pipelines crossing Wet’suwet’en territory,” Matt Simmons, with maps by Shawn Parkinson, The Narwhal.

Post-Secondary Youth

“Transforming Indigenous healthcare, one person at a time,” Anne Fu, The Queen’s Journal.

Short-Form Video

“You can say ‘Hockey is for everyone.’ Or you can join the fight to ensure that’s true,” Donnovan Bennett, with cinematography by David Zelikovitz, Sportsnet.


MEDIA AWARDS JUDGES

Our distinguished panel of judges evaluates the submissions. Entries are assessed on the quality and depth of the reporting and storytelling, how they centre the voices and agency of the people and communities at the heart of the issue, and how they present possible solutions.

Megha Bahree is an award-winning journalist who has reported stories from across Asia and the U.S. Currently she’s the Americas business editor for Al Jazeera Digital.
Tayo Bero is an award-winning journalist and culture critic who covers pop culture, social justice, health, and wellness. She is a regular columnist with The Guardian and a former CBC radio producer.
Willow Fiddler is Anishiniini Oji-Cree from Sandy Lake First Nation in Treaty 5. She is a national reporter for The Globe and Mail. She writes about issues affecting Indigenous peoples.   
Peg Fong is a journalism and communications instructor. She’s the Vancouver correspondent for The Economist and a former contributor to The Toronto Star, The Globe and Mail, Vancouver Sun, and the CBC.  
Thandiwe Konguavi is an award-winning journalist who was born in Zimbabwe. She is a web writer and editor at CBC Edmonton. She produced the docuseries “Black Life: Untold Stories” debuting on CBC Gem and CBC TV in October 2023.
Justin Ling is an award-winning investigative journalist who covers national security, policing, and politics. He is the author of Missing From the Village, and he hosted the podcasts, The Village and The Flamethrowers. 
Asmaa Malik is an associate professor at Toronto Metropolitan University. She has held editorial roles at The Montreal Gazette and Toronto Star. Her work has appeared in The Washington Post, The Walrus, and The Toronto Star. 
Vinita Srivastava is a journalist and educator. She hosts and produces “Don’t Call Me Resilient,” a podcast about race by The Conversation. Her work has appeared in The New York Times Magazine, Savoy, VIBE, and The Village Voice.

MEDIA AWARD CATEGORIES

Our judges consider the following award categories.

national news story icon
National Written News Story
National news story of approximately 3,500 words or less on current or breaking news relating to human rights issues.
long form video icon
Long-Form Video
Documentary or current affairs segments with a runtime of 10-80 minutes relating to a human rights issue. 
mixed media story icon
Mixed Media
Online stories featuring at least three elements: text, photos, video, audio, animation and data visualization. 3,500-word maximum. 
Short-Form Video
Filmed news stories with a maximum runtime of no longer than 10 minutes highlighting a human rights issue. 
Long-Form Radio
Radio documentaries or current affairs programs with a maximum runtime of approximately 80 minutes highlighting a human rights issue.  
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Long-Form Podcast
Podcast episodes with a maximum runtime of approximately 80 minutes highlighting a human rights issue.  
Local/Alternative Media
Current affairs or breaking news stories of 3,500 words or less relating to a human rights issue. Alternative media denotes publications that are not major private or publicly funded media outlets.*
Post-Secondary Youth
Text, audio, video or mixed media stories by post-secondary school students in Canada about a human rights issue. It must be published or broadcast by a media outlet associated with a post-secondary institution. 

*Alternative publications often have mandates to highlight stories and perspectives that are overlooked or underrepresented in the mainstream press.

2021-2022 AWARD WINNERS

  • Long-Form Podcast:Season Two of CBC Podcasts’s The Village, Justin Ling, Jennifer Fowler, Julia Wittmann, Eunice Kim, Arif Noorani, Chris Oke, Cesil Fernandes, Fabiola Melendez Carletti, Alex V Green, and Faith Fundal 

For more information about the Amnesty Media Awards, please contact Cory Ruf, Media Officer, Amnesty International Canadian Section (English-Speaking), 416-363-9933 x 344, mediaawards@amnesty.ca.

Previous Award Winners