(Left to right: Phillip Crawley, Pierre-Elliott Levasseur, John Cruickshank, Kelly Toughill)

On February 3rd  evening, the NNC co-hosted a very interesting discussion between Phillip Crawley, publisher of the Globe and Mail, John Cruickshank, publisher of the Toronto Star, and Pierre-Elliott Levasseur, Chief Operating Officer of La Presse. The evening, co-hosted by the Canadian Journalism Foundation, was entitled “Spotlight on Publishers: The Challenge of Making News Pay”.

Between the publishers and the well-attended audience (everyone is more than curious about the subject matter!) there was a good discussion. Many of the familiar nostrums were trotted out, including possible government intervention, but what resonated most with CEO John Fraser was the continuing conviction that trying to do the best and most professional job, despite dwindling resources, was the best front line of defence. “I personally am convinced that at some point, the hard core of responsible readership will kick in to maintain the integrity of the media. I also think that this is one of the principal justifications for the National NewsMedia Council, whether you are a printed newspaper, a magazine or new member of the digital news media.“