Newspaper awards celebrate community press

Bulletin in Quebec’s top three!

The annual Quebec community newspaper awards were announced last Friday, June 2, during the gala evening of the Quebec Community Newspaper Association’s annual convention in Ste-Adèle, north of Montreal. The convention included the association’s annual general meeting and four workshops covering internet security and media business matters. While West Quebec’s newspapers did exceptionally well in the awards for the past year, the Bulletin d’Aylmer and its two associated papers serving the Pontiac and West Quebec itself won significant honours.

The centrepiece of the awards evening were two: first, the co-publishers of the Bulletin, West Quebec Post, and the Pontiac Journal were given the association’s highest honours, the Lindsay Crysler Award for Outstanding Achievement in the community newspaper industry.  Lily Ryan, Editor, and Sophia Ryan, Sales and Operations Manager, were recognized for their contribution to the community newspaper industry in Quebec. They received a standing ovation in the resort ballroom. Awarding this honour to both women represents the youthful – and female – dynamism of the community newspaper industry in Canada.

The second significant event was another positive step for newspapers -- and for the future of women within the media. The heart of a newspaper is its local leadership and ability to not only present but to analyze the news affecting its communities, best represented by the two awards for Best Editorials (one, on local matters and, second, on national and broad perspectives). Both of these prestigious categories were won by young women – the Bulletin d’Aylmer editor Lily Ryan and Pontiac Journal editor Allyson Beauregard. Both honours emphasize the youthful and dynamic face of newspapers, signifying a very positive future for newspapers within Canadian communities and for women within this progressive media.

Best of Aylmer is best in Quebec

Equally impressive for Aylmer was the First Place awarded to the Bulletin in the crucial Community Promotion category for its celebrated Best of Aylmer awards, managed by Sophia Ryan. The Pontiac Journal took third in this category.

Not only did the Bulletin itself do exceptionally well – named the third best newspaper in Quebec – but community papers across West Quebec/Outaouais did exceptionally well in the individual categories.

Looking at the numbers, of the 107 awards of the evening, West Quebec papers won almost half – approximately 41. The Bulletin, Post, and Journal themselves won 20 top placings – and these were among the most important for the region’s communities, best editorial, major writing awards, industry leadership, and in promoting the interests of  local businesses, via awards for advertising and community event sections. The Bulletin and Journal swept two of the three awards for Best Editorial Page.

Of the French-language categories, the Bulletin and affiliate Pontiac Journal swept four of the five awards. It is significant that First Nations news-papers in Quebec are especially strong,  taking 23 honours (not counting the Nunatsiaq newspaper which, although not indigenous-owned is published in Inuktitut as well as in English.)

Best writing awards

Individually, the Bulletin and West Quebec Post’s Laurent Robillard-Cardinal won three awards, Best Agricultural Story,  Best Feature Series, and Best French-language News Story. Ms Ryan won Gold in Local Affairs Editorials. 

In support of the papers’ advertisers, Charles Viau, Production Manager of the Bulletin, was nominated for Best Advertising, Small Format, while Tania Baker of the Bulletin and Journal was nominated for three Best advertising awards, winning first, second and third places.

 

The Bulletin won for Best Website (second place), Best Advertisement (third place), first place for Best Community Promotion, as well as the Best Editorial Page (second place), and Best Small Format Advertising Creation (third place).

“The dynamism and high quality these awards represent show that Aylmer and Gatineau are well-served by their local, community newspapers,” commented Sophia Ryan. “Readers and local businesses were the big winners tonight!”