Here’s my latest update on local media stuff:
- Major election-related news today: Edmonton Journal editor-in-chief Margo Goodhand confirmed to CANADALAND that her paper was asked by Postmedia to make the endorsement of Jim Prentice and the PCs. You can read the endorsement here. I have not seen comment from the Calgary Herald, but presumably the same thing happened with their endorsement of Prentice. Also, both the Calgary Sun and Edmonton Sun endorsed Prentice, with the exact same editorial.
- I wrote about the topic of endorsements back in February 2014, and I argued at the time that newspapers should write endorsements but that they should be signed. “I don’t think political endorsements should carry the name of the news organization, but rather the name of the journalist(s) making the call,” is what I said. I still believe that. Had the endorsement of Jim Prentice been signed by Paul Godfrey, I think it would have been just fine.
- In other provincial news, a judge lifted the public ban today on the legal dispute between former justice minister Jonathan Denis and his estranged wife Breanna Palmer. Postmedia petitioned the court to lift the ban, as did lawyers representing Denis.
- And for something lighter, here’s what Alberta’s party leaders enjoy watching on TV.
- Oh and don’t miss the Journal’s campy promo video for their election night coverage.
- The Canadian Association of Journalists has announced the finalists for its annual awards for outstanding investigative journalism in Canada for 2014. Congratulations to Keith Gerein and Larry Wong from the Edmonton Journal and Charles Rusnell and Jennie Russell from CBC Edmonton on your nominations!
- The finalists for the 38th annual National Magazine Awards have also been announced. Congratulations to Avenue Edmonton on your nominations, including Best Magazine Cover!
- We’ve got our own little awards show happening here in Edmonton on Saturday – have you got your tickets for The Yeggies yet?
- Marty Forbes turned his Edmonton Sun column over to Allan Watt this week, who wrote about the upcoming Eskimos season and their seventh annual Edmonton Eskimos Women’s dinner, hosted by Global TV’s Margeaux Morin (who used to be a member of the cheer team).
- Shaw TV did a feature on Yegventures. Lincoln sure has an extensive library of content to draw from!
- Don’t miss Karen’s latest roundup of local blog posts!
- And for the latest in the world of social media, here’s Linda’s latest notes.
- Linda was profiled by Game Changers recently. “Linda Hoang is all over social media.” How’s that for an understatement to start the piece!
- I am looking forward to checking out The Outside Circle, a graphic novel written by Edmontonian Patti Laboucane-Benson about “a young aboriginal man wrapped up in gang life in Edmonton.”
- Big news folks: Patience has left the nest and that means the Journal’s Goosecam has been shutdown for another season.
- Corus Entertainment has announced a long term partnershop with Mediabase as its new supplier of airplay data.
- Here’s a feature on The Onion: “How a fake newspaper is turning into a real media empire.”
- The Knight Foundation is awarding more than $700,000 to a new round of technology projects as part of the Knight Prototype Fund.
- From the New York Times’s Public Editor Margaret Sullivan: Everything I Know About Journalism in 395 Words. Lots of great stuff there, like this: “Be aggressive — a passive journalist isn’t really a journalist.”
- Ready for election night? My dashboard is ready to serve you.
You can follow Edmonton media news on Twitter using the hashtag #yegmedia. For a great overview of the global media landscape, check out Mediagazer.
So, what have I missed? What’s new and interesting in the world of Edmonton media? Let me know!
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