Recent comments

What bothers me most about the original Star piece is the use of anonymous witnesses to describe Ford's actions, without even an explanation of why these "sources" did not wish to be named.
It's lowball unbalanced journalism, in which accusers cannot be held accountable for allegations that run counter to what other (named) witnesses freely offer..

Even as we teach that there is no such thing as pure objectivity, there can - and should - be a sense of journalistic professionalism. That means that a journalist's conscience should inform, but not deform the content. Too often, journalists think by being completely transparent about one's political and cultural influences, that would give them a pass to present personal values disguised as news and information. This is neither good journalism not professional behavior. There is (imo) a difference between ethics and professionalism. While j-schools teach ethics as prophylaxis, perhaps we need to spend more time on what constitutes professional behavior.

What has complicated the situation in the US (and to a lesser extent in Canada) is the power of the First Amendment/Charter of Rights and Freedoms. I frequently heard American journalists say that their First Amendment rights would always trump the demands of an employer. Maybe. But while all Americans have First Amendment rights to an opinion, they do not have a First Amendment right to be a journalist.

Yes, you're right Steve. I needed to expand on that comment water/wine metaphor. Here is what I meant: Micah will find as a freelancer, she is going to be faced with having to sometimes write copy that comes very close, if it isn't outright, to being advertorial; that is, editorial work that highlights a product friendly to whatever title is buying her work. It's a fact of life for many freelancers, and if she feels her ethics have been offended by Manchester, wait until she's out on her own. Only the most established of freelancers can afford to turn down writing commissions for reasons of principle. As I said, Micah did the courageous thing and left; not many would because there are too few jobs out there, and freelancing is far from a secure gig.

I am an internationally trained journalist (8 years) . I have been working full time as an online editor with the Star group for the past 8 months in Toronto.

I'd like to train in writing, editing and reporting in a Canadian journalism school as I feel it is important to learn how to report for Canadian audiences. I work full time and I would like to know what programs/schools would be a good fit? A part time or online course would be ideal.

Thanks 

The core issue here appears to be the characterization of a column as either 1) editorial or 2) advertising. The way Luxen presents it, it is an advertisement, an incentive to someone trying to start up a new business. The way Manchester presents it, it's just a regular ol' piece of editorial.

But here's the thing: it's not. Though Manchester in paragraph 7 tries to state all submitted content is held to the same standard, it just doesn't ring true. If it did, Luxen would have had the authority to hold the submitted column to the same standard as all other editorial. She could veto it, fix it, or work with the writer to get a column in the public interest. But not here.

Here it appears Manchester said run it, and Luxen said ethics, and Manchester said no to that. It's a shame.

I also find it curious that Manchester attempts to call Luxen's credibility into account with a personal attack in paragraph 8. It's something journalists don't normally do in opinions or editorials, and an ad hominem flaw in argument. It's just an attempt to skirt the actual issue, whether the column was advertising or not.

As to Banksj's comment, to recommend Luxen "water down her wine", is to say that Luxen should deliberately mislead readers into believing advertising is editorial. This is clearly against CAJ policy. As well, any journalism instructor, student or newspaper reader would be appalled by hidden advertorial, and it's a sad state of affairs when people are expected to filter their news for advertising.

I have no doubt that advertising reps at the Courier are feeling pressure every day from their clients to get some free advertising through editorial. Businesses are always looking for an edge or a way to leverage a media buy, and reps get commission for their sales so they're pushing because they need to make a living. Nothing wrong with that; it's a dance that's been going on since newspapers have been printed.

But everybody should be in on discussions about how to handle these requests, from the publisher to the editor to the reporters to the ad reps. A policy would work wonders. There's a hundred ways to deal with requests like these that would make everybody happy. Some papers respond by working around it and maintaining a sponsored column called "Business Beat" or report from the Chamber. A smart ad manager would sell grid spots around such a column. Reporters should be paid extra to write ad copy.

Micah did the right thing by quitting because this offended her principles and that's admirable. But nobody in the media business today is entirely free from the demands of compromising, and journalists need to understand that. She'll find out as a freelancer she'll have to water down her wine to make a living.  

Léo-Paul Lauzon braque quant à lui les projecteurs sur Power Corp... Voici quelques passages de son texte "Power Corp., médias et démocratie " paru dimanche dans le Journal de Montréal qui pourtant, faut-il le rappeler, est la propriété d'un conglomérat (Québécor) et d'un PDG envers lequel il n'a pas toujours été très tendre.  Je peux le comprendre. Je m'interroge aussi comme citoyen sur la force de Québécor. Mais ce, sans pour autant lui porter tout le blâme et me fermer les yeux sur cette force multinationale et multitentaculaire qu'est Power Corporation, dont l'impact n'est point illusoire, mais bien réel au plan économique et politique à l'échelle mondiale.  M. Lauzon a le mérite de mettre en lumière le revers de la médaille, ce côté gravé des lettres "PCC"... chose que trois autres lettres "SRC" gagnerait à faire aussi au nom de l'équilibre des points de vue tel que le prescrivent ses normes et pratiques journalistiques. Ce n'est pas tant de trouver et prouver lequel "est pire que l'autre", mais bien de mettre en évidence cet "autre" qui lui aussi est très puissant dans l'univers médiatique. Force est de constater que la SRC nous illustre que ses liens entretenus par le passé (voire encore présentement) avec Gesca lui confère ce biais qui n'a rien de bon pour notre démocratie. Messieurs Gravel et Gendront devraient bien le savoir...  et en rectifier le tir, eux qui font partie d'un ordre professionnel marqué de cette mission.

M. Lauzon affirme entre autres "Les dangers de la convergence de Quebecor, c’est un million de fois moins dangereux pour la démocratie, la liberté d’expression et le bien commun qu’une multinationale comme Power Corp"....  "dans le cas de Power Corp., les journaux ne servent que de courroies de transmission aux desseins économiques de la compagnie mère", "les journaux de Power, avec en tête leurs éditorialistes et leurs chroniqueurs, attaquent nos instruments collectifs et préconisent comme solution à tous nos problèmes la privatisation de tout" ... "Voilà pourquoi tous, et je dis bien tous les éditorialistes et chroniqueurs des médias de Power Corp., incluant André Pratte et Alain Dubuc, et la majorité des « opinions » publiées militent pour privatiser les services publics, les ressources naturelles et nos instruments collectifs. Puis-je suggérer aux journalistes de l’émission Enquête de Radio-canada de s’intéresser à l’impact de Power Corp sur la démocratie et le bien commun et de mettre en lumière les « opinions tricotées » aux intérêts des Desmarais des éditorialistes de La Presse et des journaux de Gesca." ...  "La dernière émission d’enquête de Radio Canada sur la véritable liberté de presse chez Quebecor en prenant pour exemple un palmarès sur les personnalités québécoises de l’année dans le milieu culturel fait dur. C’est un montage qui a accouché d’une souris. Allô journalisme d’enquête !"

While I have some concerns over the way NPR handled this, the principle of journalists remaining neutral is still a good one. Lisa Simeone (who is a friend and a great broadcaster) was also the host of a documentary series called "Soundprint." Her role on that program and her role as spokesperson for the Occupy movement are in conflict and NPR was right to ensure that does not happen.

I'm less convinced that "World Of Opera" was in any danger of being a political broadcast because of Lisa's presence. As we told the few journalists at NPR who objected to the policy, "You have a first amendment right to your opinions. You don't have a first amendment right to work at NPR."

This Hour Has 22 Minutes is not worth the free publicity it has received. The Star has wasted precious space making a big deal of this -- gleefully shaming Rob Ford! I'm surprised it didn't add its self-serving "The Star Gets Action" graphic

Though Mary/Marg says Ford's daughter "wasn't there," a young child can be seen in the window as Ford huffs away (10 seconds in). Hard to say, but she looks more curious than scared -- it's the mayor who's so scared he calls the cops.

However, Ford's certainly not telling the truth in later claiming "I'm open to the media." In addition to giving 22 Minutes a cold shoulder, His Onerous won't talk to the biggest newspaper in the country (the Star) or invite its reporters to news conferences. He generally avoids media if it might be critical. For hilarious proof, listen to the As It Happens 'interview' with Rob the day after his election last year.

I hope Robert Steiner took note of Roger Gillespie's comment about the journalists the Toronto Star hires. They are, he said, "nimble, technologically adept and write easily about any topic that needs coverage." That phrase should be our mission statement at Canadian journalism schools. After being trained and confident with those skills, freelancers can then work to find that niche that U of T seems to feel is out there -- or any other writing pursuit when they learn that one doesn't pay the bills. And besides, do we really need another j-program in Canada, let alone Ontario, however specialized it may be? We are deceiving prospective students into believing they can merely obtain a high-level, gold-embossed credential to land work, freelance or otherwise. We are awash in journalism grads and content mills only too happy to publish their work for free. Graduating 10 more won't help anyone.