University of Regina professor Patricia W. Elliott is the new J-Source editor-in-chief
By Chris Waddell, Publisher
I am pleased to announce the appointment of Patricia W. Elliott as editor-in-chief of J-Source effective June 1, 2016.
An assistant professor in the School of Journalism at the University of Regina, Patricia was one of the J-Source originals, involved in the publication’s earliest days, watching it go from a prototype to a live site. She was initially a section editor and produced a weekly column, The Big Issue, before taking time off to complete a PhD. Last fall, she began contributing to J-Source once again.
“It was good to be back and now I’m excited to have this opportunity to be on the front line of ensuring Canadian media stories are given prominence on a daily basis,” she said.
As the first Western Canadian editor-in-chief, Patricia said she hopes to promote geographically diverse news coverage, further expanding J-Source’s impact and relevancy to all regions of Canada.
Patricia’s background is as a freelance magazine journalist and in alternative media. Her work has received several nominations from the Canadian Association of Journalists and the National Magazine Awards for outstanding investigative journalism. Patricia is also the author of a book on Burma, The White Umbrella, and produced a documentary film on Burmese journalists, Breaking Open Burma, in 2012.
Patricia replaces Bruce Gillespie who completes his three-year term as J-Source’s editor-in-chief on April 30. During that time, Bruce oversaw a redesign of the site and expanded the breadth of our coverage that gratifyingly has produced steady growth in audience both for the site and the weekly J-Source newsletter.
He also played a role in fundraising campaigns, including our latest Patreon campaign that is helping to fund freelance journalists working for J-Source. The first piece commissioned under that new program ran last week. Please take a look and consider contributing to help us do more.
Bruce’s colleagues and students in the Digital Media and Journalism program at Wilfrid Laurier University will no doubt appreciate the additional time he can devote as an associate professor to school concerns, but we will miss the thoughtful consideration and steady hand he brought to everything at J-Source. I am sure I speak for the 45,000 unique monthly visitors to J-Source and the 5,000 recipients of the weekly newsletter in thanking Bruce for his dedication, guidance and enthusiasm during the past three years, helping J-Source grow.
Christopher Waddell is the publisher of J-Source and an associate professor in the School of Journalism and Communciation at Carleton University. He will be the acting editor-in-chief of J-Source for the month of May.
Professor, School of Journalism and Communication, Carleton University, Publisher J-Source