The Sun
Opinions, Saturday, April 28, 2007, p. 33
Analysis
Marc-François Bernier, coordinator of the journalism program at the University of Ottawa *
A lockout for shareholders
At the risk of oversimplifying, I would identify the lockout prepared longstanding hit the journalists of the Journal of the late Quebec last week. It has as main objective to maximize the convergence to satisfy shareholders and not that of improving the quality and diversity of information.
Media convergence is essentially to disseminate texts, images and sound on a single computer media through digitization. It is a revolution that transforms deeply and quickly how to do journalism and media industry.
Because of convergence - or because of it's point of view - the traffic patterns are changing media. Thus, few young people read the newspaper and must be otherwise reach to attract advertisers. Internet is more engaging and interactive than traditional media. As for advertising, it moves on media other than paying the daily newspaper or television station as a general VAT. There are also newspapers that are increasing and competition is stronger than ever. The maximum profit
Quebecor has good reason to respond to changes affecting all media. Although few journalists who deny this reality. We must change the ways of age. But one can question the wisdom and relevance to provoke a labor dispute to arrive as quickly as possible to such results. One can even believe that this is not to improve the quality and diversity of information that Quebecor shakes its employees. The main reason is the pursuit of maximum profit in the short term to please shareholders.
Several researchers argue that since the early '80s, the news media have ignored their democratic functions and the public interest to become very profitable businesses. Especially when their shares are traded on public markets in Toronto and New York. This mode of media ownership and market pressures that encourage implantation accelerated convergence strategies.
This has practical effects, and sometimes painful, on the organization of working journalists to be more productive, not in terms of quality of information (which is true and serves the public interest in particular) but in terms of volumes of short stories and reports produced quickly adapted and broadcast on several platforms (newspaper, Internet, television, podcasts, radio, cell phones, etc..). This favors reporting trivial and often spectacular, at the expense of serious investigation, verification or strict fairness.
As such, convergence is not necessarily a threat to democracy. Instead, one could argue that it makes it easier than ever to disseminate information to audiences of different and increasingly mobile. But it must be done in respect of the integrity of journalism.
However, convergence to the sauce mixture Quebecor is more or less subtle in journalism, advertising, messages of persuasion, self-help and self-censorship. We saw these last month when none of its journalists had criticized or denounced weak reports on the quality of water in public pools or statement of Montreal methodological flaws of the survey on the alleged racism of Quebecers.
Yet journalists are often excellent Quebecor, contrary to the belief of those who despise them and mourn a golden age of journalism that has never existed. But these journalists are both professionals who try to resist pressure from their bosses and employees have to comply.
Moreover, this convergence is imposed within a media company whose weight is crucial in Quebec due to the high concentration of media ownership. That allows Quebecor to impose in the debate public issues that promote its circulation and its ratings (miscellaneous, crime, racism, immigration, entertainment, sports, etc..) and to the promotion of business interests (artists, records, shows, books, magazines, etc..). It becomes impossible to escape the messages that saturate Quebec. The real issue
For now, issues of quality and diversity of information have not yet been cited publicly by opposing parties on the working week, flexible collective agreements, the average salary of journalists, the relocation of classified ads for Ontario, etc..
Hopefully the journalistic issues related to convergence strategy of Quebecor will take the place they deserve in the real public debate. This lockout is going well beyond the working conditions of employees and expected profits by shareholders. We should speak well, one day, the great diversion of the democratic mission of journalism to satisfy business interests. This concerns the majority of the news media, but is even more blatant in the Quebecor empire.
* The author worked as a journalist at the Journal de Québec "from 1986 to 2000. At the invitation the "Sun", the author discusses some issues related to the lockout by Quebecor.
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