In the new media age, #JournalismIs... more important than ever
BY MEGAN DEVLIN | JULY 7, 2015
JournalismIs and the product it's pushing: journalism itself.
It's part print, digital and TV advertising and part social media conversation using the hashtag #JournalismIs, explained Mary Agnes Welch, a Winnipeg Free Press reporter and spokesperson
for the campaign.
"It always kind of irked me that journalists had no real mechanism to promote their craft and promote the value of journalism," she said.
She mentions that professionals from chiropractors to accountants have ad campaigns promoting the importance of their work, but journalists do not.
"We don't explain how we work. We don't explain why what we do is important," said Welch.
In addition to giving journalists a sense of pride in their profession -- a pride which has taken a hit, Welch thinks, with recent high profile scandals -- the campaign aims to make people
think about
the quality of the journalism they consume.
"With a few keystrokes you can sample thousands of opinions, afloat in a sea of information," the campaigns website reads. "But as the volume increases, the accuracy and reliability
of professional journalism is essential."
Its snappy campaign video also questions the reliability of information received via social media feeds may be -- an important question, especially since 30 per cent of U.S. adults get their
news via their Facebook feed.
"I think it's the volume of the Buzzfeeds, the Gawkers… [there's] just a huge number of new sources that have popped up in the last decade," said Welch.
The campaign came about as a coalition between big media companies, journalism schools, advocacy groups like the Canadian Association of Journalists and with funding from Unifor.
Welch hopes the coalition can spark something bigger than just the campaign -- perhaps a series of events or a larger conversation about journalism in Canada.
"The nature of journalism has really changed even in just the last five years with the advent of technology and the online world," said Welch.
She mentions cuts to newsroom budgets which mean fewer journalists are doing more things.
But she also thinks digital reporting techniques have given journalists a greater breadth than they've ever had before.
"We give readers and viewers way more ways into a story," she explained. "They might not read long blocks of text but they might watch a video, they might look at an info graphic, they
might look at a slideshow," she added.
The campaign pitches the values and functions of journalism within society.
Its video and posters explain that good journalism is a watchdog over the powerful, essential for public debate and relentless in getting to the truth.
"We want to start raising awareness about the value of good journalism and what it takes to make it," added Welch.
Megan Devlin is rabble's news intern for 2015. She hails from Toronto, but she's starting her Masters in Journalism in Vancouver. She got her start in journalism working at the
Western Gazette where she was a news editor for volume 107 and online associate editor for volume 108.
New ad campaign makes case for journalism
By Chantal Braganza, Associate Editor 
Until September, readers of the Globe and Mail, Toronto Star, Postmedia papers and more may notice advertisements
telling them about how the very products they’re consuming in print, online or by broadcast are made—and why they’re
important. Spearheaded by trade union Unifor and supported by more than a dozen media and journalism school sponsors,
the recently launched JournalismIS campaign aims, says its mandate, to foster a public discussion that celebrates, discusses
and critiques the work of professional journalists.
“I think journalists have always been unwilling to do the navel gazing that’s common and expected in other professions,”
said Winnipeg Free Press public policy reporter and JournalismIS representative Mary Agnes Welch. “We don’t want to be
the story. We get viewers to know or care about how we got the story or what might be involved.
“And maybe we just assume that people saw All The President’s Men, that they understand what we do. And the longer I’ve
been a journalist, the more I realize that people really don’t.”
Outside the industry sphere itself, the past year has been rife with public discussions of the work Canadian journalists do—in
many cases, conflict-of-interest scandals, from the resignation of Leslie Roberts from Global News in January to the firing of
CBC’s Evan Solomon earlier this month.
Welch said that such cases are outliers. “Most journalists would never think of behaving in that way—but we never say this.
But we let those big cases form the way we think about how journalists behave.”
“It’s not why we began this campaign,” she said. “But there’s a sense that there’s already this Canadian discussion underway.
We haven’t been great about wading into it.”
Last summer, Unifor’s national media sector allotted about $80,000 for a project that at the time was envisioned as both a
campaign and the launch of a coalition that would continue to organize events and projects around the theme of promoting
and discussing professional journalism.
The ad campaign itself was developed over the past year and launched on June 12 at Ryerson University in Toronto. Media
sponsors such as the Globe and the Star offered pro-bono space for the ads. Depending on whether funding continues,
Welch said, other projects down the road could include media literacy projects for schools or an investigative journalism
fund.
The series of print, radio and broadcast ads that comprise the campaign highlight 10 journalistic principles that
JournalismIs organizers pulled together from established guidelines from organizations such as the Canadian Association of
Journalists, where Welch was a past president, Poynter and the Pew Research Center. Some feature profiles of prominent
Canadian journalists, such as Andrew Coyne and Ingrid Peritz, and elaborate on values from “creating a forum for public
debate” to “giving a voice to the voiceless.”
“There’s a pretty significant consensus on what the core principles of good journalism are—but we also needed to make them
punchy for ads. We also made it clear that this is a start; if there’s something you want to add, tell us.
“We want Canadians to answer that question; we’ve given you 10 of our answers. Now what are yours?”
- See more at: http://j-source.ca/article/new-ad-campaign-makes-case-journalism#sthash.Wjps4dVr.dpuf
AAM Supports Canadian “JournalismIS” Campaign
AAM is proud supporter of JournalismIS, a broad-based campaign celebrating the contributions of quality Canadian journalism, through advertising and online conversation. Learn more.
Joan Brehl, Vice President and General Manager, AAM Canada
The Alliance for Audited Media is proud to support JournalismIS, an advertising campaign that was recently launched by a
coalition of professional associations, unions and media organizations in Canada to show the value and benefits of
professional journalism.
JournalismIS celebrates the contributions of quality Canadian journalism, through advertising and online conversation, and
marks the first phase of a longer term effort to mobilize the media industry and public to support professional journalism
throughout the nation.
“Journalists are thoroughly trained and deeply committed to their profession, and you see the results every day in news
stories that are interesting, reliable and always striving for the truth,” said Mary Agnes Welch, former president of the
Canadian Association of Journalists, reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press, and spokesperson for the campaign.
“Our campaign is aimed at initiating a wider conversation about the value of journalism and what we all need to do to
support a robust journalistic culture in Canadian society.”
JournalismIS is supported by a number of national and local newspapers, broadcasters, journalist associations, unions and
industry groups, including:
- Ryerson School of Journalism
- Unifor
- Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ)
- The Globe and Mail
- Toronto Star and Metroland Papers
- Bell Media CTV
- Postmedia
- Communications Workers of America
- Newspapers Canada
- TC Media
- Winnipeg Free Press
- Black Press
- National Observer
- Rabble.ca
- cartt.ca
- Glacier Media Group
- National Newswatch
- Carleton University School of Journalism & Communication
- Canadian Media Guild
- Conestoga
Visit journalismis.ca to learn more about the campaign and join the conversation by using #JournalismIS on social media.
June 12, 2015
For Immediate Release
Ad campaign champions the benefits of journalism
“Professional journalism is more important than ever”
TORONTO – A coalition of professional associations, unions and media organizations today launched an advertising campaign highlighting the value and benefits of professional journalism.
The June 12 launch of the JournalismIS campaign at the Ryerson University Rogers Communication Centre, featured a
presentation of the print, online and video advertisements (journalismis.ca), which are scheduled for release beginning on
June 13. More than 100 journalists, media employees, journalists and representatives of newspaper publishers and
broadcasters, participated in the campaign launch. Speakers included prominent print and broadcast journalist Chantal
Hébert.
The campaign aims to rally the wider community of journalists and media workers, media corporations and media
consumers to increase awareness, recognition and support for professional journalism.
“News is the lifeblood of our democracy. As the volume of information and the range of opinion available to media
consumers increases, the contribution of professional journalism has become more important than ever,” said Mary Agnes
Welch, former president of the Canadian Association of Journalists, reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press, and spokesperson
for the campaign. “Journalists are thoroughly trained and deeply committed to their profession, and you see the results
every day in news stories that are interesting, reliable and always striving for the truth. Our campaign is aimed at initiating a
wider conversation about the value of journalism and what we all need to do to support a robust journalistic culture in
Canadian society.”
Campaign sponsors (list below) include professional associations, unions representing journalists and other employees in
the media industry, educational institutions, media corporations and industry associations. “The breadth of sponsorships
and support highlights a unique characteristic of this campaign” said Lana Payne, Unifor Atlantic Director, columnist for
The Telegram in St. John’s NFLD, and MC for the campaign launch. “It involves stakeholders from across the media
industry and in all forms of media – traditional and digital – coming together to recognize the contribution that the
principles and the practitioners of professional journalism make to building and sustaining an open, democratic and
engaged Canadian society.”
The JournalismIs campaign marks the first phase of a longer term effort to mobilize the media industry and the public to
support professional journalism in Canada. “Right now this campaign is about initiating a public conversation. We believe
this is the first step toward taking action to preserve and promote our profession in the future” commented Ms. Welch.
JournalismIS: Campaign Sponsors
- Ryerson School of Journalism
- Unifor
- Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ)
- The Globe and Mail
- Toronto Star and Metroland Papers
- Bell Media CTV
- Postmedia
- Communications Workers of America
- Newspapers Canada
- TC Media
- Winnipeg Free Press
- Black Press
- National Observer
- Rabble.ca
- cartt.ca
- Glacier Media Group
- National Newswatch
- Carleton University School of Journalism & Communication
- Canadian Media Guild
- Conestoga