Local News Map data reports
Local News Map data for 2008 to the present are downloaded and analysed every two months. Click on the image to see the reports.
As necessary as safe drinking water: An interview with local news researcher April Lindgren
April Lindgren is committed to researching local news poverty, particularly through a database she maintains, the Local News Map. Press Forward called Lindgren to talk about journalism as a public good, the signs of hope, and how publishers can better connect with the communities they serve.
Transparency and trust: How news consumers in Canada want AI to be used in journalism
By NICOLE BLANCHETT, CHARLES H. DAVIS, MARIIA SOZONIUK and SIBO CHEN
When it comes to artificial intelligence (AI) and news production, Canadian news consumers want to know when, how and why AI is part of journalistic work. And if they don’t get that transparency, they could lose trust in news organizations.
New guides demystify and encourage philanthropic support for journalism in Canada
By ANA SOFÍA HIBON and APRIL LINDGREN
Philanthropic support for journalism in Canada is in its infancy, but evidence to date suggests that even on a modest scale it can propel powerful reporting that makes a difference.
Funding Journalism: A Guide to Philanthropic Support for Canadian Media
Charitable foundations are increasingly recognizing the democratic value of quality independent journalism, and the link between journalism and the social, economic and environmental issues they care about. Philanthropic support for journalism can create many opportunities for newsrooms. But, for the relationship between philanthropy and journalism to flourish, the two sectors need a shared understanding of their respective fields.
“Funding Journalism: A Guide to Philanthropic Support for Canadian Media” provides practical tools for Canadian media interested in exploring philanthropy as a revenue source.
New guide offers path to philanthropic support for journalism
By APRIL LINDGREN, ANA SOFIA HIBON and SARA KRYNITZKI
A collaboration between academia and non-profits shows how philanthropy can play a role in securing the future of journalism in Canada—and why it should.
Librarians can help create inventories for community news access in Canada
By APRIL LINDGREN
A not-so-modest proposal for an annual census of local news outlets and a news poverty index.
It is impossible to randomly choose a Canadian municipality and then find a current list of radio, TV, newspaper and online news outlets that produce local coverage for that community. No such searchable, all-inclusive database exists…
Funding Journalism: A Guide for Canadian Philanthropy
Quality journalism is a pillar of democracy. It provides trustworthy information and holds power to account. Now more than ever, we know that media influences dominant narratives that drive public conversations and policies that affect our lives. At its best, independent journalism can give voice to underrepresented narratives and create a forum where people from diverse backgrounds can engage in informed and constructive dialogue across lines of difference. While journalism’s contributions to a healthy society are widely recognized, funding journalism is still uncharted territory in Canadian philanthropy.
“Funding Journalism: A Guide for Canadian Philanthropy” contains practical information and tools for foundations interested in funding journalism.
Talk now, avoid conflict later: Openness and transparency are essential as philanthropic support for journalism becomes more widespread
By APRIL LINDGREN
There is growing recognition in the philanthropic sector that journalism produced in the public interest is part of the critical infrastructure of communities.
News organizations in this country are increasingly in need of more diverse revenue sources as advertising dollars disappear. Philanthropic support is one of those new revenue sources…
The role of philanthropy in the world of journalism
“Philanthropic Support for Journalism: A Canadian Roadmap” is a project of the Local News Research Project (LNRP) that investigates the potential for Canadian foundations and other sources of charitable giving to shore up journalism. In this podcast, the challenges and opportunities associated with philanthropy as a revenue source for news organizations are discussed…
The COVID years: Risk, reward and rethinking priorities
By APRIL LINDGREN, STEPH WECHSLER AND CHRISTINA WONG
What the rise of hate, a surge in government support and a relentless pandemic have meant for media in Canada…
COVID-19 Media Impact Map for Canada data
Updated fact sheets and data from the COVID-19 Media Impact Map for Canada will be regularly uploaded as information becomes available. Click here to see the reports.
Discordant or just different? A comparison of community newspaper data in Canada
By APRIL LINDGREN & CHRISTINA WONG
Government, industry and philanthropic responses to the decline and disappearance of local news in Canada need to be informed by robust empirical data…
New campus-industry startup will generate local stories, build students’ data journalism skills
By KRISTEN CUSSEN
LOCAL NEWS DATA HUB
A new collaborative data journalism project launched by students and faculty from the School of Journalism at X (also known as Ryerson) University will generate stories for local newsrooms across Canada and train the next generation of reporters and editors…
A year of mapping media impacts of the pandemic in Canada: COVID-19 Media Impact Map for Canada update, March 11, 2021
By STEPH WECHSLER
We tracked the layoffs, wage cuts, service reductions and closures since last year. Here’s what we know, what we don’t and what could come next…
Will nonprofit journalism rules now on the books help news organizations in Canada?
By TANJA SARIC Long-awaited updates now offer path for news media to issue tax receipts to donors. But the road to philanthropic journalism is paved with Canada Revenue Agency rules, uncertainty about Canadians’ willingness to give…
Local news is being decimated during one of its most important moments
by APRIL LINDGREN. Originally published on Policy Options. May 27, 2020 The COVID-19 pandemic is revealing much about human nature. One of those revelations is that when it comes to matters of life and death, Canadians turn to trusted traditional news sources for information. A Statistics Canada survey done in early April found that 51…
We mapped all the media impacts of COVID-19 in Canada
By STEPH WECHSLER From pay cuts to layoffs, print reductions to closures, thousands across the industry are hit hard by the pandemic More than 100 media outlets in Canada have made cuts in 11 provinces and territories in a six-week period, with nearly 50 community newspapers shuttering. Upwards of 2,000 workers have been laid off.…
New research project explores best practices for philanthropic support for journalism
By TANJA SARIC A new study launched by the Local News Research Project at Ryerson’s School of Journalism will explore what can be learned from other countries about philanthropic support for news media…
Local news snapshot finds journalists split on their future
By RUTY KOROTAEV Survey of small-market papers finds workers anxious about ad revenue, stressed about digital competition but still have their readers’ trust…
Good news, bad news: A snapshot of conditions at small-market newspapers in Canada
By APRIL LINDGREN, BRENT JOLLY, CARA SABATINI AND CHRISTINA WONG We undertook this survey to find out about conditions at small-market newspapers in Canada and to explore the sector’s prospects at a time when newspapers in general face major challenges…
Thunder Bay: Local news is important for conversations on reconciliation
By APRIL LINDGREN The Ontario city of Thunder Bay is in the headlines these days for all the wrong reasons. Canada’s highest rates of murder and violent crime. The highest number of hate crimes per capita. Systemic racism embedded in shoddy police investigations. The deaths — many unexplained — of Indigenous students who come to the city for education not available in their remote northern communities…
What the Death of Local News Means for the Federal Election
By APRIL LINDGREN Resignation and outrage colour veteran journalist Mary-Ann Barr’s voice as she reflects on the Red Deer Advocate and its coverage of the recent Alberta provincial election…
PhiLab Interviews: April Lindgren, the Local News Research Project
Canada has recently entered into a discussion about the use of philanthropy to support public-interest journalism. Underlying this debate is growing concern about the future of news – especially local news organizations, 262 of which have closed in 190 communities since 2008…
Local News Map reports offer bi-monthly snapshot of local media changes in Canada
By DANIELA OLARIU News organizations have been closing at three times the rate that new ones are being launched. Community newspapers are the most frequently closed news outlets across the country and new online media isn’t making up for the losses of more traditional news media. These are just some of the striking observations that can…
How Ottawa should spend its $50 million to support local news
March 26, 2018 By APRIL LINDGREN, Ryerson University Who holds officials accountable when cities like Thunder Bay, Ont., rife with political and racial tensions, have no local reporters? (Shutterstock) There’s $50 million in federal government money on the table in Canada to support local journalism in the country’s under-served communities over the next five…
New survey investigates state of smaller-market newspapers in Canada
February 2, 2018 By AMANDA POPE A new online survey is asking Canadian journalists working for newspapers with a print circulation under 50,000 to provide information about how their newsrooms are managing and adapting to the turbulent times.
Instead of mourning local news, try paying for it
By APRIL LINDGREN, Ryerson University Canadians often mourn the loss of their local newspaper. But there’s a disconnect, because few Canadians actually pay for a local news subscription. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jonathan Hayward) Expressions of shock, concern and loss were widespread recently after Postmedia Network Canada Corp. and Torstar Corp. announced a newspaper swap and…
Local News Research Project data sets
Three Local News Research Project data sets have been made available on this website for academic research. Please credit the Local News Research Project for any use of these data sets.
Local News Poverty in Canadian Communities: Presentation to the House of Commons Heritage Committee
By APRIL LINDGREN, JAIGRIS HODSON & JON CORBETT
Brampton’s ethnic media strategy an experiment in reaching out to newcomers
By ISABELLE DOCTO Efforts by the City of Brampton to reach newcomers through ethnic media will be an important test of how municipalities can better communicate with newcomers, particularly those who struggle with English, new research suggests. The study, by Ryerson University journalism professor April Lindgren, examines the evolution of Brampton’s ethnic media strategy over…
New research project examines local news poverty
The impact of newsroom cutbacks, consolidations and closures will be the focus of a new study examining local news poverty in communities outside of Canada’s major media centres.
How is your Toronto neighbourhood portrayed in the news? Check it out using these interactive maps
By APRIL LINDGREN & CHRISTINA WONG Introduction Concerns about how neighbourhoods are portrayed in the news have surfaced regularly in the Toronto area over the years. But are those concerns valid?
Conservatives received most election coverage in GTA ethnic newspapers, research finds
By ROBERT LIWANAG Toronto-area ethnic newspapers tended to cover the Conservatives more extensively than other political parties during the 2011 election, concludes a new study by Ryerson University journalism professor April Lindgren.
Geography of news: Examine the pattern and subject matter of Toronto Star news coverage
By CHRISTINA WONG Find out how the Toronto Star covered Toronto in 2011. Discover where the newspaper covered local news in the city and examine the types of stories the newspaper reported on in each ward.
Geography of news: Examine the pattern and subject matter of OpenFile.ca news coverage
By CHRISTINA WONG Find out how OpenFile.ca covered Toronto in 2011. Discover where the online site covered local news in the city and examine the types of stories the website reported on in each ward.
The COVID-19 Media Impact Map for Canada tracks the impact of COVID-19 on the media industry dating back to March 11, 2020, when the WHO declared a global pandemic. Map markers indicate the type of news organization affected (daily newspapers, community newspapers, magazines, television and radio broadcasters, and online news sites). The colour of these markers shows the type of impact on media outlets. Where there is more than one impact, markers display the colour representing the media impact according to this order: closed/temporarily closed, cancelled some/all print editions, cut back news broadcasts/shows, reduced coverage (other), layoffs/job losses, and pay cuts/reduced hours. A summary of the latest map data is available here.
The Local News Data Hub is committed to i) shoring up local journalism by supplying newsrooms with data-driven stories ii) training student data journalists and iii) providing support for/collaborating with journalists and news outlets on data-based projects. After identifying a dataset relevant to multiple communities, the Data Hub team does the necessary reporting to produce a story template that is then populated with data for individual cities and towns. These local stories are available to all local media via the LNDH website. Many are also shared with the Canadian Press wire service for distribution to CP clients across the country. Read more HERE.
Funding for the Local News Research Project has been provided by the Rossy Foundation, the Ken and Debbie Rubin Public Interest Advocacy Fund, the Canadian Geospatial and Open Data Research Partnership, the Canadian Media Union/CWA Canada, Canadian Journalists for Free Expression, a Mitacs Accelerate grant, Unifor, and Toronto Metropolitan University.