Western Gazette earns Canada-high 10 nods for journalism awards: 'Trust' (2024)

Western University’s student newspaper has been nominated for 10 national journalism awards, more than any other campus publication in Canada.

Sponsored by the Canadian University Press (CUP), the John H. McDonald Awards honour excellence in student journalism – and Western Gazette staffers are nominated in categories such as investigative reporting, feature writing and sports coverage.

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“I feel very proud of myself and the whole paper,” said Estella Ren, the first international student to serve as editor-in-chief in the Gazette’s 118-year history. “It’s amazing to see our paper nominated. That’s a testament to all the love and hard work we’ve put into this paper, so I’m really happy for everyone.”

The Canadian University Press is a non-profit owned by student newspapers at post-secondary schools across the country. Nominations for its awards can open more doors for young journalists entering the workforce and enhance the Gazette’s credibility, Ren said.

“We want to show to the campus that you can trust us and that we really care about your stories and we’re willing to bring your voice to the public,” she said.

Ren was born in Nanjing, China, a sister city to London that’s 300 kilometres from the China’s biggest city, Shanghai. Being a journalist was a dream she was “afraid” of expressing before she moved to Canada.

“Not many people in China believe it’s a good career,” she said. “The journalism industry in China is under a lot of pressure and censorship.”

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When she first joined the Gazette, Ren had “many concerns” and was anxious about what opportunities she would get as an international student. “I feel like the paper is more inclusive than I thought.”

Among the Gazette nominees:

• Sonia Persaud for student journalist of the year
• Sophie Bouquillon for photo of the year and student photojournalist of the year
• Miles Bolton for sports and feature writing
• Adshayah Sathiaseelan and Sophia Schiefler for news reporting,
• Manan Joshi for science reporting
• Estella Ren for investigative reporting.
• and the Gazette website is nominated for best online media presence.

A board of industry professionals will decide the winners WHENat a ceremony in Edmonton.

baleeiro@postmedia.com

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