media
How a pioneering Globe reporter helped introduce Marshall McLuhan to the world
Kay Kritzwiser, a feature writer assigned to the Globe and Mail’s weekend supplement, The Globe Magazine, had never heard of Marshall McLuhan when, on a mid-November morning in 1963, her edior, Colin McCullough, asked her to write a profile of him. She visited the Globe’s library and took away a Who’s Who entry and a… More »
Interview: Nieman fellow David Skok on Canadian journalism’s digital future
David Skok, the managing editor of GlobalNews.ca, checked into Harvard University in September to begin a one-year Nieman Fellowship. The 33-year-old is the first Canadian digital journalist to receive the prestigious award. He’ll be studying “how to sustain Canadian journalism’s distinct presence in a world of stateless news organizations.” He spoke with This two weeks… More »
Eight hours in the wacky, wonderful world of Sun News Network
ASSIGNMENT Watch the fledgling Sun News Network, infamously nicknamed “Fox News North,” for eight hours. Note distinguishing characteristics, rate credibility and journalistic bona fides, and measure decibel levels of hosts’ shouting. Hypothesize audience size and composition. Compare and contrast with American forerunner Fox News. Administer wine as needed. 4:00 PM The Caldwell Account with host… More »
This45: Mel Watkins on Straight Goods founder Ish Thielheimer
Once upon a time, there was born in Brooklyn a boy named Fred Theilheimer. When he started high school, asked his name by some young women in the schoolyard—and fearing that “Fred” would not sufficiently impress—in an act of spontaneous imagination, and with Moby Dick in his American DNA, he said, “Call me Ish.” And… More »
This45: Rachel Pulfer on Ghana correspondent Jenny Vaughan
Jenny Vaughan is no stranger to the hybrid role of journalist, leader, and advocate. She now occupies a unique position as the Accra, Ghana-based eyes and ears of Journalists for Human Rights, a media development organization with operations throughout sub-Saharan Africa. Currently, her job ranges from ensuring the professional and personal well-being of a team… More »
This45: Rachel Pulfer on Ivory Coast correspondent Jessica McDiarmid
Born and raised in British Columbia, Jessica McDiarmid knew from a young age that she wanted to write about tough subjects in difficult places. Around age 14, McDiarmid devoured Oakland Ross’s A Fire on the Mountains, a compilation of true-life stories about the extraordinary circumstances in which people live and thrive in 17 global hotspots,… More »
This45: Arif Noorani on Canadian Journalists for Free Expression
I’m sitting in a room surrounded by hundreds of people, kindred spirits, a number of whom would normally not cross paths. Chiselled-faced anchors sit side by side with journalists who have been exiled from their homes around the world. Then a series of startling images jolt me up in my seat. Footage of riot police… More »
This45: Jessica Leigh Johnston on feminist teen magazine Shameless
Flip through the pages of Shameless, a feminist magazine for teen girls, and you’ll find a debate about the value of corporate social responsibility titled “When Oppressive Corporations Do Progressive Things” alongside a first-person call for self-acceptance, “Shame, Beauty and Women of Colour.” It’s not exactly Seventeen, and that’s the whole point — or at… More »
This45: Alex Roslin on the Canadian Centre for Investigative Reporting
Three years ago, when Hamilton reporter Bilbo Poynter first mentioned his idea of starting a centre to support investigative journalism, I thought, Yes! Just what we need at a time when newsrooms are pole-axing in-depth reporting budgets and trying to outdo each other with reality-show guano. Now, don’t get me wrong. I enjoyed watching Josh… More »
Canada is more diverse than ever—except in the halls of power
Canada is no longer the Great White North—except at the boardroom table. Consider this: the population growth of racialized or non-white groups continues to outpace that of white Canadians. This has created a shift in the demographic balance of the Canadian mosaic, with our population on its way to becoming a “minority majority.” According to… More »
