In 1976
Andrew MacFarlane, Dean of Journalism at the
University of Western Ontario (UWO), was trying to revive the university's recently defunct President's Medal for Canadian Magazine Journalism. His original idea was to create a new award divided into English and French counterparts. But MacFarlane eventually developed a proposal for a series of magazine awards, whose salient features were that the program would be bilingual – and therefore truly national – and would recognize individual excellence in the many aspects of the magazine industry – writers, illustrators, editors, photographers and
art directors. MacFarlane together with
John S. Crosbie, president of the
Magazine Association of Canada, secured the participation of the
Canadian Periodical Publishers Association (CPPA), representing 193 Canadian magazines, and CPPA's former president
Michael de Pencier. MacFarlane reached out to his counterpart at
Université Laval,
Roger de la Garde,
Alan Edmunds, head of the Periodical Writers Association of Canada (
PWAC), and veteran newsman
Pierre Berton, among others. As the collective effort began to take shape across the country, by the spring of 1977 the National Magazine Awards had developed a clear mandate. On 14 November 1977, National Magazine Awards Foundation received its charter of non-profit foundation status from the
Government of Ontario. In 2015, the NMAF established the
Digital Publishing Awards, to promote and reward the achievements of those who create digital publishing content in Canada. The National Magazine Awards celebrated 40 years of awarding Canadian creators in 2017. The 40th anniversary event was co-hosted by
Kim Pittaway,
Michael de Pencier, and D.B. Scott. Alicia Elliott delivered the keynote address. AS of 2022, the National Media Awards have been given to journalists, illustrators and photographers for 45 years. == First awards ==