On the strength of hard-hitting stories ranging from COVID-19’s singular impact on markets, to moving forward in the resulting new economic landscape, four deserving and impressive journalists have been chosen as winners of the 2021 PMAC Awards for Excellence in Investment Journalism. Celebrating 10 years of the best in Canadian financial journalism, PMAC extended entries this year to include podcasts, resulting in a record number of high quality and insightful submissions from across the country.
Selection Process
Each qualifying entry was considered in competition with all others by an independent panel of judges that will be appointed annually.
The panel comprised of an appropriate balance of experienced and knowledgeable professionals with expertise in either the field of journalism or investment/financial services:
- At least one judge was fluent in French and English.
- All judges were screened for any actual or perceived conflict of interest.
In evaluating the merit of an entry, judges considered:
- The article’s content meeting the stated purposes of the Award;
- Professional journalistic ethics and commonly accepted standards;
- The constraint of the article length given the complexity of the topic covered; and
- Journalists that go “above and beyond” to write thoughtful and substantive articles that provide a perspective on topical issues pertinent to the Canadian investing public.
Winners of the 2021 PMAC Awards for Excellence in Investment Journalism are:
LONG SUBMISSION CATEGORY:
1st Prize:
Mark Burgess (Advisor’s Edge) article: Don’t panic: Client coaching for the 24-hour news cycle
This article also received first prize overall.
2nd Prize:
Niall McGee (The Globe and Mail) for: How COVID-19 fuelled a boom in Canadian stock promotion scams
SHORT SUBMISSION CATEGORY:
1st Prize:
Tim Shufelt (The Globe and Mail) for: Markets Leave The Economy Behind, Portfolio rebalancing is getting trickier, For investors sidelined with cash, market surge presents a dilemma
2nd Prize:
Gabe Friedman (Financial Post) for his podcast: Market Manipulation or David Vs. Goliath? Unpacking Reddit Phenomena
The judging panel gave honourable mentions to Financial Post’s Kevin Carmichael and Victor Ferreira for FP Investigation: As CEWS flowed in, dividends flowed out
“This year’s outstanding written and audio submissions go above and beyond in addressing the pandemic’s impact on the market and how investors need to move forward,” says PMAC President Katie Walmsley. “The Awards represent the best investment journalism Canada has to offer. This year, we are acknowledging the value of stories of various lengths and media to readers and listeners.”
The annual competition was created to encourage and recognize outstanding investment journalism that ultimately improves the financial literacy of Canadians.
The competition’s Long and Short Article first prize is $4,000. Second prize is $3,000. An additional $1,000 is awarded to the first prize overall. The prizes will be presented at PMAC’s virtual award presentation taking place via Zoom on June 17th.
