Richly reported, expressively told stories about the exploitation of food-app workers in Toronto, young Chinese-born Uyghurs living in limbo and dreaming of a better life in Canada, and the forces behind — and grassroots community responses to — eye-watering grocery prices in northern First Nations are among the winners of the 30th annual Amnesty International Canada Media Awards.
Presented annually since 1996, the Amnesty International Canada Media Awards celebrate excellence in human rights reporting by Canada-based journalists and Canadian journalists working abroad. Past winners include such leading lights of Canadian journalism as former Globe and Mail foreign correspondent Stephanie Nolen and longtime CBC Radio broadcaster Anna Maria Tremonti.
The winners of the 2025 Amnesty International Canada Media Awards are:
- Local/Alternative Media: “Torn apart from their families, Uyghur exiles look to Canada in hopes of a better life.” Yvonne Lau, Broadview, January-February 2024 issue.
- Long-Form Audio (tie): “The next war: Sexual violence in Ukraine.” Sarah Lawrynuik, freelance documentary for CBC Radio’s The Current. 29 February 2024.
- Long-Form Audio (tie): “‘You have to survive. Stay safe. I’m doing what I can.’ Canadians describe nightmare race to get loved ones out of Gaza.” Saba Eitizaz. This Matters, Toronto Star, 6 February 2024.
- Long-Form Video: “Food for profit.” Tom Fennario and Brittany Guyot. APTN Investigates, APTN, 23 February 2024.
- Mixed Media: “I went undercover as an Uber Eats courier and made just $1.74 per hour online. Here’s what I learned about the troubling cost of convenience.” Ghada Alsharif, with Lance McMillan, Andres Plana, Angelyn Francis, Jesse McLean, and Duncan Hood, Toronto Star, 14 December 2024.
- National Written News: “‘Torturing us as payback:’ Inside the disturbing allegations of how Ontario jail guards exacted their revenge against inmates.” Brendan Kennedy, Toronto Star, 12 August 2024.
“We congratulate the winners and thank them for their remarkable contributions to the public’s understanding of critical human rights issues in Canada,” said Ketty Nivyabandi, Secretary General of Amnesty International Canada’s English-speaking section. “These journalists do not just tell excellent stories; they are exposing abuses, centring marginalized voices, and demanding better from those in power.”
To be eligible for consideration for the 2025 Amnesty International Canada Media Awards, entries must have been published or broadcast in Canada between 1 January 2024 and 31 December 2024. The winner in each category was selected by a two-member panel of judges. This year’s jury featured seven experts with a diverse range of experiences and specialties in Canadian media and journalism education:
- Chris Arsenault is theChair of the Master of Media in Journalism & Communication Program at Western University.
- Donnovan Bennett is an award-winning TV and radio host, producer, writer, and content creator, his work often touching on the intersections between sports, race, politics, gender, and pop culture.
- Sonya Fatah is an associate professor of journalism at Toronto Metropolitan University.
- Shenaz Kermalli is a freelance journalist and journalism instructor at the University of Toronto’s School of Continuing Studies and Toronto Metropolitan University.
- Jillian Kestler-D’Amours is a Montreal-based reporter and editor with Al Jazeera English online and a winner of multiple Amnesty International Canada Media Awards.
- Sharon Nadeem is an award-winning multimedia journalist who works as a producer and head of partnerships at the Global Reporting Centre at the University of British Columbia.
- Cory Ruf is a media officer with Amnesty International Canada’s English-speaking section and an award-winning former multimedia journalist.
“We are deeply grateful to this year’s judges, who brought care, rigour, and thoughtfulness to the daunting task of selecting from so many powerful entries,” Nivyabandi said. “Their expertise helped ensure that the winning stories reflect both journalistic excellence and Amnesty’s enduring commitment to human dignity.”
Celebrating journalist excellence for 30 years
This marks the 30th cycle of the Amnesty International Canada Media Awards. The awards were established in 1996 by longtime Media Officer John Tackaberry, who recognized the power of the press to not only inform, but to provoke action. “I hoped the Amnesty International Canada Media Awards would stimulate more human rights coverage in the media,” Tackaberry recalls, “and alert our own members to its importance as a way to spread information and prompt public action.”
Over the past three decades, the awards have evolved alongside Canada’s media landscape, expanding to recognize work in digital, student, and alternative outlets, while continuing to honour excellence in traditional formats. “From the start, some of the finest journalists in the country were submitting work for consideration,” Tackaberry said. “It was immediately evident to me that there was a deep desire by both established and newer journalists to be recognized for their work.”
Today, the Media Awards remain a rare honour that celebrates reporting with impact — stories that compel audiences, confront the powerful, and on occasion, contribute to lasting change.