London Free Press
Hi Everyone,
Today in class we discussed briefly the problems/unfortunate situations that have arisen at the London Free Press.
I know that many students in the class are not from London, however think about your home town newspaper for a moment.... Do you think what is happening is right/fair? Is it just apart of business, or is this an issue that people need to stand up for?
The LFP has been known for their award-winning local coverage, and though Dr. Nesbitt-Larking did state it was poorly written most of the time, at least we were getting local coverage, regardless of the quality. With the printing being moved to Toronto, deadlines being pushed ahead, and Quebecor making the London Free Press go to a tablet layout (I.e. Toronto Sun style), local coverage is going to suffer.
Londoners care about their community, as it only has a population of 360,000 people (roughly). How and when do you stop these big conglomerates from coming in and tearing apart what is a vital instrument within the community?
Are generalized Canadian Press stories enough, with the odd local story creeping into the pages a few days later? Is this why the newspaper in general is dying a slow and painful death, because huge corporations are trying to make everything generic?
I know this post is a bit scrambled, but I would like to know what other people think about this. Since I have lived in London for 20 years, maybe someone else would like to present a different opinion, in support or opposition.
Thank you very much and everyone have a fantastic week
Today in class we discussed briefly the problems/unfortunate situations that have arisen at the London Free Press.
I know that many students in the class are not from London, however think about your home town newspaper for a moment.... Do you think what is happening is right/fair? Is it just apart of business, or is this an issue that people need to stand up for?
The LFP has been known for their award-winning local coverage, and though Dr. Nesbitt-Larking did state it was poorly written most of the time, at least we were getting local coverage, regardless of the quality. With the printing being moved to Toronto, deadlines being pushed ahead, and Quebecor making the London Free Press go to a tablet layout (I.e. Toronto Sun style), local coverage is going to suffer.
Londoners care about their community, as it only has a population of 360,000 people (roughly). How and when do you stop these big conglomerates from coming in and tearing apart what is a vital instrument within the community?
Are generalized Canadian Press stories enough, with the odd local story creeping into the pages a few days later? Is this why the newspaper in general is dying a slow and painful death, because huge corporations are trying to make everything generic?
I know this post is a bit scrambled, but I would like to know what other people think about this. Since I have lived in London for 20 years, maybe someone else would like to present a different opinion, in support or opposition.
Thank you very much and everyone have a fantastic week
posted by King's Man at 5:27 PM
7 Comments:
I'm from a small town, and our newspaper is very different to that of a larger city. However, because of this I ussually find it wanting of more "important" national or international news. I think that the issue of the size, and therefore influence, of a newspaper seems related to how much interest there is in controlling it (obviously), and thus 'local' newspapers play the game of becoming larger and larger and therefre facing more and more of these issues!
I am from Sarnia, and my friends frequently grace the front page of our small local newspaper, the Sarnia Observer. I agree with skrapxx, such a newspaper does incite a sense of community.
In high school I enjoyed finishing reading the Globe and Mail and then picking up the light Sarnia Observer because I felt upset after reading about war, crime, and other depressing political issues. There are not enough good news covered in the media. I like to be aware and know what is going on in the world, however a good uplifting story, that shows me the good side of human nature, is more appealing.
The Sarnia Observer like most other newspapers is generic in news, however the letters to the editor are often pretty right wing, Sarnia has many conservative residents. For instance, I was appalled to read that a resident called for the town to hang their flags at half mast to "mourn the loss loss of true marriage" when the bill that allowed same-sex marriage was passed. The news may be generic, but the "to the editor" section contains a variety of opinions!
I guess I am part of the demographic that the Free Press is now trying to appeal to... since I can't say that I have ever given too much thought about my local paper (the Oakville beaver). I would rather read the globe and mail, and if I want some "local" news I turn to the GTA section of the Toronto Star-- it has just enough of that for me.
Sure, I do agree with the fact that it is unfair the the LFP is being taken over by a huge media conglomerate who doesn't care much about local news; however, I don't necessarily always think this is such a terrible thing. Laying off journalists and reducing the quality of coverage is a problem I disagree with but covering more international news may be a good thing. I am from a small town in Muskoka (northern Ontario) and our newspaper is completely based on local news. You know the type... the lastest victory of the local sports teams, the recent fair or fundraising even has taken place etc. Although, it is nice to have small town affiars published I find myself constantly longing for a local paper that covers international news. For those Canadians living in a small town or rural area it is virtually impossible to get international news without subscribing to an out-of-town paper such as the Star or Globe and Mail. In this respect, I think that covering more international news in local papers isn't always a bad thing.
I'm also from London and I too enjoy the feeling of community that the LFO has brought over the years. I enjoy seeing what's happening around town, who's over 100 years old, and if my old highschool did well in sports.
However, I think that it is important to increase the amount of international coverage. I've been a long time critic of the LFP for lack of national and international coverage and I think a change of content can be a good thing.
I think that the main problem with concentrated ownership in the newspaper industry is not really the lack of local coverage on, to be honest, fairly trivial matters but that the content of the newspaper is not critical. With the firing of journalists, a great deal of news necessarily comes from Associated Press (AP) and is therefore universal and standard in its views and opinions. The cheap cost of buying news from AP over paying a salary to a journalist is detrimental to the quality of coverage that we read. So the firing of journalists means that more and more news comes from less and less voices. Furthermore, these voices usually support a status quo attitude that does little to invigorate the public's ability for critical thought.
Perhaps online newspapers ARE better than those in print form as they at least provide the opportunity for people to discuss issues from more angles than the viewpoint provided by the newspaper.
I agree with the original poster to an extent. I live in a smaller city (approx 140,000 people) and I tend to enjoy reading some of the local news. However, some of the news in my local newspaper I feel is somewhat irrelevant (well to me). However, some people may enjoy the articles that I feel are irrelevant to me. I do like reading about what is going on in my local community. And where i'm from there is not too much bad news in the newspaper unlike reading the Toronto Star or Sun. My local newspaper is lighter in news stories (meaning they're usually about good deeds being done in the community). Therefore, I think the LFP should stay in its home city to ensure the quality of the local newspaper and so its not too much pressure (deadline wise) for writers, editors, publishers and so on. Broadening the newspapers does not help out the local community being published on because it might not give the full local coverage that many local citizens want and deserve.
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