The Canadian Ethnic Media Association Announces Winners of 43rd Annual Awards for Journalistic Excellence
TORONTO, Nov. 30, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The Canadian Ethnic Media Association is proud to announce the winners of its 43rd Annual Awards for Journalistic Excellence. In its webcast, Thursday, November 25, 2021, hosted by Actor/Producer/ Motivational Speaker Jesse Lipscombe of Edmonton; and Host/Reporter/Producer Nicole Servinis of Toronto, CEMA revealed the winners of its nine categories, along with the winner of this year's prestigious Sierhey Khmara Ziniak Lifetime Achievement Award.
***Special Note:
The original 90-minute Webcast of the CEMA Awards 2021 is now available, in full, on www.canadianethnicmedia.com .
The Television Premiere of the CEMA Awards 2021 presentation on OMNI 2, OMNI BC, OMNI ALBERTA will be broadcast Friday, December 3, 2021 – 17:30-19:00.
The Repeat on OMNI 2, OMNI BC, OMNI ALBERTA is Sunday, December 12, 2021 – 17:30-19:00.
The Winners of the Canadian Ethnic Media Association Awards for Journalistic Excellence 2021, by category, are as follows:
TELEVISION
Steve Hon Man So, Producer, Fairchild Television, for Three Kinds of Trust.
VIDEO SERIES
Taya Rtichsheva, Executive Director, U. Multicultural Inc., for Indigenous Language Series.
DOCUMENTARY/FILM
Adelina Suvagau, Producer/Director of Box of Freedom, Imagine Freedom Films Inc.
PHOTO JOURNALISM
Randy VanDerStarren, Founder of Take Your Seat Together, for Canada & Thailand 60th Anniversary.
RADIO
Marcelo Donato, Host/Producer of Perspectango, CHIN Radio, Ottawa.
PODCAST
Ryan Funk, Communications and Marketing Specialist, U. Multicultural Inc., for We Stand Together.
PRINT
Jagjeet Sharma, Editor/Publisher, of Covid 19 Chronicles, Reflections on the 2020 Pandemic. A collection of stories, poems and articles.
ONLINE ARTICLES
Manjula Selvarajah and Kirthana Sasithram, Journalists and Creators, for Boldly Asian, CBC Toronto.
INNOVATION
Steven Mceown, Producer, Rogers TV; Kerry Biskupski, Broadcast Design, Rogers TV; and Margaret Wong, Community Liaison Officer, OMNI TV; for Indigenous Interstitials.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Marcus Kolga, Founder and Director, Disinfowatch.
In keeping with the nation-wide celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Canadian Multiculturalism Act, CEMA bestowed a special honour on an individual regarded as a champion of diversity and freedom of expression. CEMA Chair, Madeline Ziniak explains, "In light of this auspicious anniversary, it is fitting that this year's Sierhey Khmara Ziniak Lifetime Achievement Award is presented to Toronto's Yuri Shymko, who has dedicated his life to multiculturalism in Canada and the pursuit of legal protection of the cultural and linguistic rights of all ethnocultural communities. Mr. Shymko has been regarded as a supporter and promoter of Canadian Ethnic Media, and a trailblazer for multiculturalism for decades." For a complete biography of Yuri Shymko, please visit our website: www.canadianethnicmedia.com
Buoyed by the success of last year's first virtual production of its prestigious awards, CEMA returned this year with its second online presentation, bigger and better than ever! This claim was easily validated by the record number of high quality submissions received this year, and the superb caliber of content and production values. It was a challenging task for the jury to determine the winners, and the unanimous decision of the association was to award two finalists in most categories as a way to recognize and celebrate the outstanding work generated by Canada's ethnic media.
It all came down to the webcast when the finalists learned for the first time the winners of their respective categories.
The much-respected CEMA Annual Awards for Journalistic Excellence, continues to be available on CEMA's Website: www.canadianethnicmedia.com, and can be more widely seen in upcoming weeks thanks to broadcast agreements struck with OMNI Television, Ethnic Channels Group and ATN-Asian Television Network. Stay tuned for upcoming broadcast airdate information.
The Awards presentation is the pinnacle of a very busy year for the Canadian Ethnic Media Association. CEMA has worked tirelessly to advocate for ethnic media operations experiencing advertising revenue challenges, while trying to keep their communities abreast of the Coronavirus, and other major issues. CEMA has proactively taken their plight to the country's three levels of government, most recently to the Canadian Radio & Television Commission, (CRTC), as part of the Canadian Ethnocultural Media Coalition, a consortium formed in conjunction with the Canadian Ethnocultural Council, Ethnic Channels Group, ICI Television and TLN Media Group to make the case for the importance of ethnic media in Canada.
CEMA firmly believes Canadian-owned ethnic media plays a critical role in Canadian society. As Ms. Ziniak explains, "For recent immigrants, and subsequent generations, ethnic media helps build an understanding and acceptance of this country, including the rights, privileges and responsibilities of Canadian citizenship. It encourages the continuity of cultural traditions and the reaffirmation of cultural identities by engaging community discourse."
Also during this year, notably the 5th Anniversary of the CEMA Media Directory, the association has responded to the consistent demand for access to the Directory from all sectors, public and private, by undertaking the massive job of refreshing its listings to ensure complete and confirmed accuracy.
Ms Ziniak, is pleased the organization was able to mount its much-anticipated annual recognition of Canada's multicultural community media. "The 43rd Annual Awards for Journalistic Excellence continue to platform Canada's best in the ethnic media landscape and to emphasize its importance to Canadian audiences".
The Canadian Ethnic Media Association is happy to welcome the return of Ontario Creates as the Sponsor of the 43rd Annual Awards for Journalistic Excellence. Ontario Creates is an agency of the Government of Ontario that facilitates economic development, investment and collaboration in Ontario's creative industries including the music, book, magazine, film, television and interactive digital media sectors. For more information visit: ontariocreates.ca
The second virtual presentation of CEMA's Awards for Journalistic Excellence was produced by Stan Papulkas, President, Hydra Films Inc., of Edmonton, Alberta. Stan is a veteran independent television producer and filmmaker with many years experience working with Canada's multicultural and multilingual television programmers.
CEMA thanks partners Canada News Wire/Cision and AllinBrand for their continuous support.
SOURCE Canadian Ethnic Media Association
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Averill Maroun, Canadian Ethnic Media Association, Marketing and Media Relations, Phone: 905 881-3955, E-mail: [email protected], Website: www.canadianethnicmedia.com
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