Investigative reporter Kathy Tomlinson's comprehensive investigation, 'How workers’ comp fanned the flames of the opioid crisis', won the Webster Award for print and online enterprise reporting.The Canadian Press
The Globe and Mail has won a Webster Award for its in-depth investigation into the roots of the opioids crisis that has swept the country and taken a particularly devastating toll in British Columbia.
The awards honour the best work of journalists in British Columbia in 16 categories.
Investigative reporter Kathy Tomlinson won the award for print and online enterprise reporting for her dive into a disturbing cause of opioid addiction in Canada.
By plowing through hundreds of workplace injury cases and appeals, she found that injured workers were encouraged to use opioids to get back on the job quickly and then given little or no assistance when they became addicted. The result was her comprehensive investigation: How workers’ comp fanned the flames of the opioid crisis.
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The Globe received a total of five Webster nominations.
Andrea Woo and Marcus Gee were nominated for their multimedia presentation of the lives of 100 Canadians who died of an accidental fentanyl overdose in 2020.
A series of stories by city reporter Frances Bula that exposed the permitting processes at Vancouver’s city hall and the resulting gridlock was also recognized by the Webster Foundation.
Report on Business reporter Brent Jang was nominated for an in-depth look at Ballard Power Systems Inc., Canada’s leading maker of hydrogen fuel cells.
Western columnist Gary Mason was nominated for his commentary on such topics as Vancouver’s homelessness issue and his lack of sympathy for snowbirds travelling during the pandemic.
“We are particularly proud of the range of journalism recognized by the Jack Webster awards. From opinion and municipal affairs to public health, this body of work underlines The Globe’s commitment to British Columbia,” Globe editor-in-chief David Walmsley said. “To win the print and online enterprise category is especially gratifying. Kathy Tomlinson’s investigation into injured workers is a testament to great enterprise work and a call to public action.”
The Webster Awards are named for influential reporter and broadcaster Jack Webster. The foundation that bears his name was established in 1986 upon his retirement and is dedicated to fostering and celebrating excellence in journalism and protecting the public interest in the province.
Among the other winners announced Wednesday night were The Tyee, which won three awards for reporting on the pandemic, the RCMP and the B.C. primary care system. The Vancouver Sun was recognized twice, for excellence in legal reporting and for an investigation with the Vancouver Province on the opioid crisis.
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