A day doesn’t go by that I don’t pinch myself to make sure I still have a job in journalism.
Wednesday was no exception as we learned Postmedia, owner of most of Canada’s mainstream dailies, is laying off 90 staff.
Postmedia also owned Lower Mainland community papers, including the Richmond News, until we were all bought by Glacier Media Group four years ago.
Ten months ago, Postmedia bought Sun Media Corp, which owned the Sun tabloid chain.
I worked for the Ottawa Sun when it launched. It was a scrappy (albeit reactionary) publication with the ridiculous Sunshine Girl on page 3 — “Marylou, who plans to go to law school but, in the meantime, works at Hooters.” I can’t say that paper was a great fit for me, but I lament many of the great people working there may soon be served pink slips.
That said, I understand Postmedia is in rough financial shape. And the fact is, any operation, be it a media conglomerate or a food co-op, has to be economically viable.
But to simply throw up our hands and say, “Well, there’s the market for ya,” is a bit of a cop out. While Postmedia is not raking it in, it is able to service its debt at eight per cent interest to GreenTree and the other hedge fund companies that own it — so those lenders aren’t hurting. Nor is Postmedia’s CEO who earns $1.7 million/year, plus bonuses.
Moreover, what are we losing when we send so many professional journalists and editors off to … writing blogs, teaching, PR jobs?
Of course, it’s self-serving to wax on about the importance of independent journalism. And, with diminishing resources, our critics ask just how critical and investigative journalists can be, anyway. However, there is still an ideal that is very often realized — journalism that informs, enlightens and helps us understand who we are.
It’s said people are getting their news from other means such as Google, blogs or social media. But much of that buzz also relies on traditional media sources; someone needs to report the story that everyone else goes crazy about on Facebook.
This is not an online versus print divide; the issue is source, and if our sources are compromised, so is our debate — as is our democracy. Some may say, I just need to get with the times and realize things such as independent journalism and liberal arts degrees are dispensable if they don’t serve the bottom line — but there is a cost to that kind of thinking, too. As a former president of Harvard University is quoted as saying, “If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.” Ironically, (and speaking of sources) that quote first appeared in the Washington Post in 1975 in a column by Ann Landers....and the debate goes on. I’m just grateful to still be a part of it.
