Northern lights

The Narwhal wins four Canadian Online Publishing Awards

Six months after launching, our ad-free investigative journalism has earned national kudos

Six months after launching, The Narwhal won four Canadian Online Publishing Awards at a ceremony on Wednesday night in Toronto, including silver for best publication.

In the best news website category, The Narwhal also won silver, while Maclean’s won gold. The Narwhal’s website and brand was developed by Ictinus in Ottawa. HuffPost took the gold in the best publication category.

In the photo essay category, The Narwhal won gold for Garth Lenz’s work documenting B.C.’s mining boom along the Alaska border — which was made possible by donations from more than 100 readers.

The Narwhal also picked up silver in the photo essay category for an in-depth look at Giant Mine in the Northwest Territories by deputy editor Jimmy Thomson and photographer Matt Jacques.

Congratulations to all of the winners, but we’re saving the biggest applause of all for our readers and members who make our independent journalism possible. Thank you for reading, sharing and donating to support independent, investigative journalism.

Now more than ever we believe in the power of stories to inspire, educate and motivate us.

As traditional business models for news falter, The Narwhal is pioneering a non-profit model that puts the public interest first and relies on reader support. The Narwhal is an ad-free online news magazine with just three full-time staff.

More than 1,000 readers have donated to support The Narwhal’s independent journalism and 440 readers have become monthly members.

If you support independent, ad-free journalism please become a founding member of The Narwhal today.

Like a kid in a candy store
When those boxes of heavily redacted documents start to pile in, reporters at The Narwhal waste no time in looking for kernels of news that matter the most. Just ask our Prairies reporter Drew Anderson, who gleefully scanned through freedom of information files like a kid in a candy store, leading to pretty damning revelations in Alberta. Long story short: the government wasn’t being forthright when it claimed its pause on new renewable energy projects wasn’t political. Just like that, our small team was again leading the charge on a pretty big story

In an oil-rich province like Alberta, that kind of reporting is crucial. But look at our investigative work on TC Energy’s Coastal GasLink pipeline to the west, or our Greenbelt reporting out in Ontario. They all highlight one thing: those with power over our shared natural world don’t want you to know how — or why — they call the shots. And we try to disrupt that.

Our journalism is powered by people just like you. We never take corporate ad dollars, or put this public-interest information behind a paywall. Will you join the pod of Narwhals that make a difference by helping us uncover some of the most important stories of our time?
Like a kid in a candy store
When those boxes of heavily redacted documents start to pile in, reporters at The Narwhal waste no time in looking for kernels of news that matter the most. Just ask our Prairies reporter Drew Anderson, who gleefully scanned through freedom of information files like a kid in a candy store, leading to pretty damning revelations in Alberta. Long story short: the government wasn’t being forthright when it claimed its pause on new renewable energy projects wasn’t political. Just like that, our small team was again leading the charge on a pretty big story

In an oil-rich province like Alberta, that kind of reporting is crucial. But look at our investigative work on TC Energy’s Coastal GasLink pipeline to the west, or our Greenbelt reporting out in Ontario. They all highlight one thing: those with power over our shared natural world don’t want you to know how — or why — they call the shots. And we try to disrupt that.

Our journalism is powered by people just like you. We never take corporate ad dollars, or put this public-interest information behind a paywall. Will you join the pod of Narwhals that make a difference by helping us uncover some of the most important stories of our time?

The past, present and future of a changing Lake Ontario

This story is an excerpt from Daniel Macfarlane’s book The Lives of Lake Ontario: An Environmental History Since the deep past, the climate of the...

Continue reading

Recent Posts

Our newsletter subscribers are the first to find out when we break a big story. Sign up for free →
An illustration, in yellow, of a computer, with an open envelope inside it with letter reading 'Breaking news.'
That’s right — all donations are being doubled until Dec. 31. The Narwhal’s independent journalism is made possible by readers just like you who give what they can. Will you help us break big investigations in 2025?
A "2X" or "two times" graphic.
Every new member between now and midnight Friday will have their contributions doubled by two generous donors.
Let’s match
Every new member between now and midnight Friday will have their contributions doubled by two generous donors.
Let’s match
That’s right — all donations are being doubled until Dec. 31. The Narwhal’s independent journalism is made possible by readers just like you who give what they can. Will you help us break big investigations in 2025?
A "2X" or "two times" graphic.