The case for deeper reporting on education in Canada The Canadian education system faces some serious challenges. But most media outlets fail to report on those problems, Discourse Media found in our new landscape analysis, “How do we talk about success in childhood?” Reporting on education in Canada is often driven by conflicts or by political funding discussions. But the people interviewed in the landscape analysis highlight other important issues.…
Canadian Journalism Foundation recognizes innovative collaboration and data work on Moving Forward project Discourse Media co-founder and CEO Erin Millar, director of business development Debbie Douez and academic collaborator George Poulos. TORONTO, ONT. — Discourse Media is the winner of the 2016 Canadian Journalism Foundation (CJF) Innovation Award for our work on Moving Forward! The win was announced at the CJF awards gala in Toronto, Ont. on June 16, 2016. Discourse Media’s…
In a recent post for the Toronto Star, Ry Moran of the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation asked, “What makes us Canadian?” “From beer commercials to first-year political science classes, this question has echoed throughout much of our history. For many years, we carefully built the narrative that we are a peace-loving peoples — true, north, strong, and free. We are these things. I believe that. But we are…
Recognition from CJF highlights the rise of collaborative data reporting VANCOUVER, BC — We’re excited to announce that Discourse Media’s project Moving Forward has been shortlisted for the Canadian Journalism Foundation’s 2016 CJF Innovation Award for advancing the quality of journalism at a time of unprecedented challenges and demands for change. Discourse Media is nominated alongside finalists CBC North and The Globe and Mail. Moving Forward is a crowdfunded, collaborative journalism project that…
Roundhouse Radio interview tackles decolonizing media, creating new narratives in journalism VANCOUVER, BC — What are the options for journalists in a changing media landscape? While traditional business models supporting public interest journalism are in decline, there is a growing need for better reporting on complex issues. On March 11, 2016, Minelle Mahtani, host of Sense of Place on Vancouver’s Roundhouse Radio, spoke with Discourse Media’s co-founder and CEO Erin Millar about how Discourse…
What is the best way to measure the impact of our collaboration with Maclean’s that probed high rates of Indigenous incarceration? VANCOUVER, B.C. – As a journalist, when I start digging into a complex story, I’m bolstered by the idea of impact. When this thing breaks, how will people react? Whose perspective will be broadened? What policies might change? I hope for a ripple and fantasize about a tidal wave. But how…
When we launched Discourse Media almost one year ago, we had a lot of questions. We had a hunch that a more collaborative approach to journalism would enable us to do a better job of reporting on potential solutions to major problems. We felt this concept applied to all levels of the journalistic process: reporting, engaging audiences and the ever-ominous funding question. The most innovative sectors of every field are achieving results…
I like to think of Discourse Media as a laboratory in which to experiment with new ways of doing journalism to improve reporting on solutions. Over the past year, we’ve learned a lot from these experiments. What would happen if we embedded two journalists at a gathering of civic innovators? (The Doable City Reader.) Could we create independent journalism while working directly with a client sponsoring our content? (The Spirit of…
