Resources

Good news! There are lots of things you can do to support local journalism and many of them are FREE!

NEW: RESOURCE FOR ONTARIO TEACHERS

Check out our list of suggestions (below) and feel free to share it.

Also, please send us your ideas so that we can add them to the list, and then give you a shout out on our social media channels.

FREE ways to support local journalism, and a few that will cost just a few bucks:

  • Got 10-60 minutes to promote press freedom in your community? We can help! Join our #SpotlightPressFreedom campaign to raise awareness of UN World Press Freedom Day. It's easy! For campaign details and to learn how you can participate, see our campaigns page and check out the FAQ.

  • Tell local business owners, managers and front-line staff that you saw or heard their advertisement through local news media.

  • Publicly thank local advertisers via social media, mentioning that you saw or heard their advert through local news media.

  • Follow us on Bluesky @inkstainedcamp.bsky.social and X-Twitter at @InkStainedCamp, ‘like’ and repost our tweets.

  • Tag your local politicians in relevant posts and reposts (tweets and retweets).

  • Encourage local civic leaders — ward councillors, mayors, regional councillors, regional chair, MPPs, MPs and leaders of all political parties — through social media or direct emails, to support local journalism. Share with them our toolkit for municipal leaders.

  • Kids' craft project: Help them create a lawn sign displaying the name of your favourite local news outlet.

  • Create an email signature that boosts support for quality journalism. (For example "Without democracy, there will be no independent press. And without an independent press, there can be no democracy.” Martin Baron, Collision of Power.)

  • Cut back on engaging (posting, liking, sharing) on Meta products (Facebook, Instagram) as long as Meta blocks news on its platforms.

  • Suspend advertising on Meta platforms (Facebook, Instagram) as long as it blocks news on its platforms.

  • Be an ambassador: Help your friends and family understand that local journalism is essential for democracy to thrive.

  • Criticism of news media outlets is fair, but ENSURE YOUR CRITICISM IS FAIR! Be careful to not spread false narratives by making broad sweeping statements about "the media." For example, rather than criticizing "the media" as a whole — be specific. Is your criticism about a local, regional or national outlet? Is it regarding legacy media or digital upstarts or social media, which have become our dominant news channels? Also, back up your arguments with evidence. Why? Because none of us wants to be mischaracterized or misrepresented. Also, civil society depends on it!

  • Subscribe to one or more news outlets (paper or digital).

  • As a way to teach young people the value of local journalism, buy them digital subscriptions as gifts.

  • Make a donation to one or more Canadian organizations working hard to promote public-service journalism, including: Journalists for Human Rights; Friends of Canadian Media; The Canadian Journalism Foundation; J-Source; the Canada Press Freedom Project, World Press Freedom Canada; Canadian Journalists for Free Expression or international advocacy groups such as the Committee to Protect Journalists or Reporters Without Borders (RSF).
  • See more "action items" from Margaret Sullivan and Matt Pearce.

NOTE: Ink-stained Wretches does not solicit nor accept financial donations. If you would like to donate a few hours of your time or skills to our projects, please contact us at ink.stained.campaign@gmail.com

Toolkits

Each toolkit is a PowerPoint presentation containing a dozen or more ideas for supporting local news outlets.

Many of the ways are FREE!

Leaders can consider, discuss and implement any of those ideas in their communities.

Feel free to download and adapt them for your own context.

Please contact us if you would like to collaborate to create a toolkit for a specific role or sector.

Reports, Newsletters and Blogs

MediaPolicy.ca
a blog by Howard Law, Unifor's former director of media, provides regular insightful updates on media policy in Canada.
The Shattered Mirror: 5 Years On
Public Policy Forum (2022)
The Shattered Mirror: News, Democracy and Trust in the Digital Age
Public Policy Forum (2017)
Mind the Gaps: Quantifying the Decline of News Coverage in Canada
Public Policy Forum (2018)
Digital News Report
by The Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at Oxford University
Nieman at Harvard
"The Nieman Foundation houses a dynamic set of initiatives to promote and elevate the standards of journalism and educate and support those poised to make important contributions to its future."
Columbia Journalism Review
"CJR’s mission is to be the intellectual leader in the rapidly changing world of journalism." newsletter available.
Edelman Trust Barometer
“Three in four are worried that fake news will be used as a weapon.” p. 2 of the 2020 report's executive summary.
Information integrity on digital platforms
by the United Nations (June 2023)

Associations / Groups

The Local News Research Project led by scholars at Toronto Metropolitan University's School of Journalism; the University of British Columbia; and Royal Roads University; provides a crowd-sourced interactive map displaying changes in the news media landscape across Canada. Check out changes affecting your local news providers.

Canadian Association of Journalists “For more than 40 years the CAJ has worked to provide vital advocacy and professional development for journalists across Canada. We are dedicated to promoting excellence in journalism—from the university classroom to the national stage!”

The Canadian Journalism Foundation promotes, celebrates and facilitates excellence in journalism, and fosters opportunities for journalism education, training and research.

News Media Canada “Created in late 2016 as a product of the agreement by its members to merge the Canadian Newspaper Association (CNA) and the Canadian Community Newspaper Association (CCNA), News Media Canada represents hundreds of trusted titles in every province and territory. Prior to this change, our organization was known as Newspapers Canada.” – source NMC website

Media Action Plan (MAP) is made up of a committee of Canadian journalists and media workers belonging to Unifor local unions who are dedicated to protecting Canadian media.

Friends of Canadian Media “Friends of Canadian Media is a non-partisan citizens’ movement that stands up for Canadian voices in Canadian media – from public broadcasting to news, entertainment, culture, and online civil discourse, we work to protect and defend Canada’s rich cultural sovereignty and the healthy democracy it sustains."

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"Without democracy, there will be no independent press. And without an independent press, there can be no democracy.”

- Martin Baron, Collision of Power.