Ideas

The challenge of pitching and telling the investigative, enterprise or explanatory story will always remain and even intensify, despite what news managers say about being committed to original content. In the upcoming issue of Media magazine, editor David McKie sought to tell the story behind the 2012 award-winning stories, highlighting the challenges facing journalists in getting these important stories told.

On the 30th anniversary of Access to Information, David McKie sees reason for positivity: If we’re capable of doing stories with a weak law that gives the government too many ways to withhold information, and the information commissioner too few powers to force institutions to hand over records, then think of the stories we could do with an even stronger law.

When it comes to writing obituaries, your story is the last word on a person’s life. Don Gibb gives advice on how to write these sensitive stories in a way that gets everything right while humanizing, remembering and celebrating a person's life the way they deserve. With an introduction from Media magazine editor Dave McKie.

As journalists, we ask tough questions of our sources. But it turns out we may need to ask such questions of fellow journalists as well. Stephen Ward writes about an alarming trend he is seeing south of the border: partisan groups passing off their work as journalism. Partisan journalism simply can’t provide the value that public journalism ideally does. The U.S. cases should serve as a warning to Canadians. Foreword by J-Source Ideas editor and Media magazine editor David McKie.