Yesterday was a big day at the Digital Publishing Awards for The Local. Our publication took home four awards, including the grand prize: General Excellence in Digital Publishing (small publications).

The awards recognized some of the pieces we’re most proud of in 2020, as part of our ongoing coverage of the pandemic in Toronto. Kat Eschner received a silver medal in the Best Feature Article (short) category for her humane story about the criminalization of public space early in the pandemic, “Tuesday in Allen Gardens, Where the Police Guard the Benches.” Aparita Bhandari won a silver in Best News Coverage for “Where the Pandemic Hit Hardest,” her in-depth feature on the entrenched systemic issues in the northwest of the city. And Simon Lewsen won gold for Best Feature Writing (long) for his masterful longform piece on this province’s long-term care system, “A Long-Term Tragedy.”

The Local was the third-most awarded publication at this year’s Digital Publishing Awards, behind only The Globe and Mail (10 awards) and Radio-Canada (5 awards), and won in all four categories in which it was nominated. Not bad for a small publication with a modest budget.

We want to congratulate the winners, and thank all of the brilliant contributors who make The Local what it is.