Category / Read / Field Notes

Reporting from the midst of a drug crisis in BC

By Nicole McCormick In March of 2016, less than a month after learning that the deadly opioid fentanyl had begun wreaking havoc in the streets of Surrey BC, Surrey Now reporter Amy Reid watched as one of her sources almost died in front of her. Jeff, a man she had interviewed three weeks prior, was…
Down, but not out of the picture

By Patrick Fulgencio for The Signal When Canon Inc. announced one of its higher-end cameras in 2013, the advertising campaign sought to catch the attention of amateur photographers. Nearly every advertisement and product description had two recurring elements. The first was crisp images of the camera. The second was a slogan that read: “Revoke your…
Canadian journalists can learn a lot from the US media’s Trump coverage, says Toronto Star’s Washington correspondent

By Michael Ott for the Ryerson Journalism Research Centre The loss of trust between the media and audiences that has characterised the Donald Trump era in the United States also played out when Rob Ford was mayor of Toronto, says the Toronto Star’s Washington correspondent Daniel Dale. Just as many Trump supporters dismiss stories about the…
The right to remain silent?

By Julianne Steeves for The Signal Early to rise, hard labour and frequent beatings – that was an inmate’s life at the Kingston Penitentiary during the 1840s. Prisoners – men, women and children – were silent 24 hours a day. Breaking the silence could lead to a beating. Food was scarce, partly because the kitchen…
After the local newspaper closes shop

By Nancy Payne for Policy Options Wally Nugent and Brenda Stonehouse were reviewing the ad they planned to run in the Lindsay Post for Canada Day. They were key organizers of the community’s Canada Day festivities, and the paper was where people looked to find out about local events. But then their phones started pinging…
Why one economist believes letting people vote to fund media could save it

By Mitchell Thompson Mark Latham says the cure for local media’s ills is voter-funded media—where voters decide which media outlets receive grants. The economist and Votermedia.org founder says the University of British Columbia has been providing grants to media outlets covering the school’s student union and its elections since 2007. It allows voters to rank…
Upcoming Day of Action calls for protections for journalists

By Grant Buckler A Day of Action set for February 25 will call for an end to mass surveillance, repeal of the Anti-Terrorism Act and new legislation to protect activists, whistleblowers and journalists. The Day of Action was originally to have taken place February 4, but was delayed to avoid conflicts with mass demonstrations against…
Canadian news consumers unaware of financial strain on the industry

By Steph Wechsler for the Ryerson Journalism Research Centre Although Canadians value journalism and believe it is essential to a well-functioning democracy, they don’t want to pay for it, concludes a new study that examined the state of Canadian news media. A survey conducted as part of the Public Policy Forum (PPF) report, “The Shattered Mirror,” found…
Untreated trauma

By Victoria Walton for The Signal Too few journalists are informed of the mental health impacts they may face on the job. War correspondents have almost all taken hostile environment training, says the Globe and Mail’s Latin American Bureau Chief Stephanie Nolen, who has worked internationally for over two decades. This aims to prevent physical…
Canadian freelancers turn to the US market to secure higher-paying gigs

By Errol Salamon, Work and Labour Editor When Canadian-based freelancer Katherine O’Brien started working as a web content and blog writer, she hadn’t made a conscious decision to publish with US companies to make a decent living. Yet for over a year and a half, O’Brien has written mostly for companies south of the Canadian…