An investigation by the CBC into a troubled teen's death at an Ontario corrections facility and a series of stories by the Calgary Herald about workplace deaths are among the six finalists for the 2010 Michener Award.

Each year, the Michener Awards Foundation honours a news organization for meritorious public service journalism.

Other finalists include community paper the Eastern Door, the Hamilton Spectator, la Société Radio-Canada and the Vancouver Sun.

Each news outlet was singled out for stories that resulted in measurable change, such as improvements in public policy or ethical standards.

The winner will be announced June 14 at a ceremony at Rideau Hall hosted by Gov. Gen. David Johnston.

Meanwhile, the judges awarded the Michener-Deacon Fellowship to Jane Armstrong, a Toronto freelance writer who plans to scrutinize Canada's aid programs in Afghanistan over the past decade.

A look at the finalists for 2010 Michener Award:

• The Calgary Herald series Worked to Death delved into sloppy on-site safety practices that led to a disturbing number of annual workplace deaths. Following the reports, the Alberta government created an online database of safety violations, implemented more safety blitzes, and promised to hire more safety inspectors.
• CBC-TV's The Fifth Estate looked at the final hours of a troubled teen who died while in the Ontario corrections system. Following the broadcasts, the scope of the inquest into Ashley Smith's death was widened and it is now easier for media outlets to access court exhibits.
• The Eastern Door reported on the decision of the Mohawk Council of Kahnawake to evict residents who were not aboriginal from the Quebec reserve. The coverage sparked a discussion into what the community paper called a "human rights story" and the decision was eventually reversed.
• The Hamilton Spectator combined journalistic and academic expertise to examine poverty in the southern Ontario city. It helped make poverty a key issue in the municipal election and provided hard data for the government and agencies to address the problems.
• La Société Radio-Canada explored the pitfalls of shale gas exploration and the everyday effects on residents of Quebec's St. Lawrence Valley. The coverage was part of a wide-scale public debate that led to a government inquiry and tighter provincial control on the industry.
• The Vancouver Sun embarked on a six-part series on safety standards following a series of fatal float-plane accidents in British Columbia. It was followed by new federal safety measures.