Archive
15 Nov

Taking stock of media and democracy

<p>New developments in the media may not have such a positive effect on the openness of information after all. The quality of news hasn't fared too well, either. Peter Steven’s new book <em>About Canada: Media </em>argues the changing face of TV, newspaper and the internet has made the quality of news sink, while fostering a more restrictive atmosphere. Check out <a href="http://rabble.ca/books/reviews/2011/11/about-canada-media" target="_blank" rel="noopener">rabble.ca</a> for an excerpt of Steven’s book.</p>

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11 Nov

One soldier, one Tweet: remembering Canada’s war dead

<p><em>Twitter gives its users a platform to broadcast, to promote, and to converse. <strong>Melanie Coulson </strong>tells us how one journalist used it to help Canadians remember the history of our fallen soldiers. This post was originally published on Coulson's blog, <a href="http://journomel.com/2011/11/09/one-soldier-one-tweet-remembering-canadas-war-dead/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Journomel.com</a></em></p><p>Twitter gives its users a platform to broadcast, to promote, and to converse.</p><p>On Wednesday, Twitter gave our hundreds of thousands of war dead a voice.</p>

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9 Nov

Ming Pao’s union fight

<p><em>When workers at Ming Pao, one of Toronto’s largest Chinese daily newspapers, started to unionize this summer things got nasty fast. Management laid off union organizers and openly likened others to Maoists. Seven weeks into the resulting strike, <strong>Rhiannon Russell </strong>visits the picket line for the inside scoop.</em></p>

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8 Nov

The power of the Punjabi press

<p>A growing number of people in the GTA say they are becoming victimized by the highly influential, and allegedly irresponsible, ethnic media, <a href="http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2011/11/06/powerful_punjabi_press_has_its_fans_and_foes.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reports the <em>Toronto Star</em></a>.</p><p>The <em>Star</em> tells the tale of more than one young bride who has immigrated to Toronto, married, discovered her husband was abusive, and subsequently filed for divorce – only to be pilloried in the local Punjabi media as a fraud.</p>

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6 Nov

Roy MacGregor decries reporters treated like “hamsters” to “file, file, file” the arcane and minutiae

<p>In a passionate <a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/books-and-media/the-thumbing-down-of-sportswriting/article4249053/">call for a return to storytelling,</a> Roy MacGregor, blames the an "obsession with 'content'" for applying pressure on reporters to "file, file, file" to produce content that lack substance.</p>

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4 Nov

New AP retweeting guidelines

<p>The Associated Press has updated their tweeting guidelines once again. This time the revamp focuses on retweets.</p><p>As <a href="http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/mediawire/152016/ap-issues-staff-guidelines-on-retweets-no-personal-opinions-allowed-or-implied/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Poynter</a> reports, staff are told to keep opinions to themselves – and to AP, a retweet can be seen as an opinion. Disclaimers on retweets and endorsements, editorial staff adds, won’t cut it, either.</p>

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4 Nov

Another great books list

<p>Who doesn’t love a top j-books list? For journalists, it’s endless fun debating what books should have made it but didn’t, and what books did but shouldn’t have.</p>

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4 Nov

Maclean’s tries augmented reality for Rethink issue

<p>For its <a href="http://www2.macleans.ca/2011/11/03/how-to-make-this-magazine-come-alive/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">second annual Rethink issue</a>,<em> Maclean’s</em> is all about innovation – even when it comes to the magazine itself.</p><p>As the editors write, “Innovation also applies to journalism.” Augmented reality, they say, is a new way to enjoy the magazine.  </p>

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4 Nov

A short history of the ampersand

<p>Did you know the wily (seriously, try drawing it) ampersand is really the result of B.C.-era scribes working too fast while writing “e” and “t”? Combined, the two letters were the Latin word et – as in “et, per se and”. Neat.</p><p>For more on the short history of the ampersand, check out the <a href="http://arts.nationalpost.com/2011/11/04/just-my-type-a-short-history-of-the-ampersand/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>National Post</em></a>, which is currently featuring excerpts from the book <em>Just My Type</em>.</p>

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3 Nov

The CBC got it wrong on Rob Ford: Torontoist

<p>When it comes to the Rob Ford/22 Minutes sideshow the CBC failed big time, writes Mark Bourrie in the <a href="http://torontoist.com/2011/11/how-the-cbc-got-it-wrong-on-rob-ford/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>Torontoist</em></a>.</p><p>Bourrie says he’s not a CBC-basher. The CBC, he says, provides a vital function and Canada needs the network. It’s just that most Canadians don’t know the Toronto mayor, and most don’t hate him.</p>

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