For the second year in a row, Times Colonist reporter Louise Dickson is a finalist for a National Newspaper Award.
Dickson was nominated in the short feature category for her story about a mother’s unrelenting efforts to save her opioid-addicted son.
Sixty-six finalists representing 20 news organizations were announced Thursday in Toronto. A total of 926 entries of work published in 2020 were submitted in the 22 categories. The annual awards recognize excellence in Canadian journalism.
COVID-19 coverage, from first-person reporting and poignant pictures to investigations and scathing editorial cartoons, dominated the nominations. Nearly half of the finalists are nominated for work related to the pandemic.
In “Drug-addicted Son Would Have Been Better Off in an Institution,” Dickson shares the anguish and sorrow of Judith Stuart, a mother who could not save her mentally ill, addicted son.
It is not an uncommon story: Close to 1,600 British Columbians died from street drugs in 2020. In fact, overdose deaths have become so common as to leave us numbed. Dickson wrote the feature in a way that pierced that barrier.
“Louise wrote about a difficult problem at a difficult time, bringing together mental illness, illicit drug use and the COVID‑19 pandemic,” said Times Colonist publisher and editor Dave Obee. “She wrote with sensitivity and understanding, enabling readers to feel the family’s pain and frustration. “Her nomination is a reminder that Times Colonist reporters are among the best in Canada.”
Last year, Dickson was a finalist in the short feature category for “Ashes to Ashes, Coast to Coast, Biker Bob Roars Back Home,” which followed the three-year journey of Biker Bob’s ashes. She was also part of a Times Colonist team nominated in 2017 for an in-depth look at the opioid crisis.
The Globe and Mail has the most finalists with 18. La Presse has nine and the Toronto Star has eight, including one shared with the Halifax Chronicle Herald. The Canadian Press has eight. The National Post has three.
The winners will be announced May 7.
