Journalism needs attention from government and corporations

Toronto Star publisher and owner Jordan Bitove made an impassioned plea recently to Canadian corporations and governments to step up and support journalism. Bitove argued that journalism is essential to democracy and that smaller communities are being starved of essential information.

Bitove, speaking to a packed audience of business and community leaders at a Canadian Club luncheon in Toronto, said big tech companies including Google and Meta have drained crucial advertising revenue from media companies, endangering journalism’s business model and indirectly, democracy itself.

“The advertising revenue that once funded our newsrooms has been moved, ironically, to companies that use our content for their benefit. The result is that we are seeing local news disappear by increments,” said Bitove, who estimated that tech giants control up to 80 per cent of the online advertising market.

Lower revenue means less money for newsrooms to spend on the editors and reporters who keep Canadians well-informed, he said. “The result is we are seeing local news disappear at an alarming rate.”

“Fact-checked, investigated, accountable truths — the stories that inform civil discourse, how we vote, what is happening in schools, hospitals, in the offices of influence, and on our streets — this comes from journalists — real people putting in a ton of effort to keep citizens informed,” said Bitove.

“Without trusted, accountable journalism how are we going to counter the misinformation and