The Telegram’s Barb Sweet has been nominated for a 2012 National Newspaper Award for her series on enduring the fallout of the sexual abuse tragedy at the former Mount Cashel Orphanage in St. John’s.
Sweet is nominated in the Local Reporting category along with: Cam Fortems and Michele Young of the Kamloops Daily News, for stories on health care in a thinly populated area of British Columbia; Susan Gamble of the Brantford Expositor, for stories on OxyContin abuse and stolen car epidemic in Brantford; and Karena Walter of the St. Catharines Standard, for an investigation of a phoney kitchen renovation company.
Sweet’s series examined the lifelong trauma suffered by victims of the Mount Cashel orphanage sexual abuse scandal.
To read the series CLICK HERE.
The stories revealed that for the boys of different eras, the physical and sexual abuse by certain members of the Christian Brothers — despite an inquiry and compensation — has been too horrible to shake with tragic consequences for some.
Even those who have done well in their lives continue to suffer the pain.
The stories also featured a rare interview with the police officer who first investigated the allegations, an investigation that was quashed.
The 72 finalists in the 22 categories were announced today from the National Newspaper Awards office in Toronto. There were 1,430 entries in this year’s competition for works that appeared in the year 2012. In all, 26 news organizations have been nominated.
The NNAs are being held in conjunction with the annual conference of Newspapers Canada which is partnering with the Canadian Association of Journalists. The Newspapers Canada conference will be held at the Westin Ottawa from May 1 to May 3, while the CAJ will overlap on May 3 and conclude on May 5.
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