OTTAWA—Davey, Kent, Lincoln, Bacon. Now, Liberal MP and heritage committee chair Hedy Fry is about to add her name to the list of Canadians who have led federal studies into the state of the country’s news media.
The dismal record of action on those previous reviews notwithstanding, Fry said she’s convinced that this time around, any recommendations will lead to concrete changes.
“I know that our government has a strong will to deal with this now,” Fry said in an interview.
“The thing about politics is that the time comes one day when stuff is facing you so hard that you have to do something about it. That time has come.”
The Commons committee will embark on an expansive study of “how Canadians, and especially local communities, are informed about local and regional experiences through news, broadcasting, digital, and print media,” according to a motion passed Tuesday, Feb. 16.
It will also delve into media concentration, and its impact on local news reporting, and how digital media fits into the whole picture. The MPs have committed to no less than 10 meetings for the study.
The latest raft of local newsroom closures and the financial struggles of large national media outlets have again raised interest in how lawmakers can help Canadian journalism survive—especially local news.
Here’s some of the recent grim headlines: the 149-year-old Guelph Mercury shuttered its print edition last month, the Postmedia chain has laid off dozens of reporters across the country, and the broadcast regulator has warned that half of local TV newsrooms are in peril.
