An expert who tracks Canada’s mainstream media industry says Postmedia’s pending purchase of Atlantic Canada’s largest newspaper chain is almost certain to result in job cuts and a reduction in local content.
April Lindgren, a journalism professor with Toronto Metropolitan University, says Postmedia Network Inc. has also made a habit of closing unprofitable publications, having shut down 57 news outlets since 2008 — more than any other media company in Canada.
“Postmedia’s strategy has been to reduce many newspapers to pale shadows of what they once were by cutting expenses and cutting the number of reporters on the ground,” Lindgren said in an interview.
“I don’t anticipate a change in strategy if this deal happens.”
On Friday, Postmedia announced plans to buy “certain businesses” belonging to SaltWire Network Inc. and the Halifax Herald Ltd., the two insolvent media companies that in March were granted court-ordered protection from creditors who were owed more than $90 million.
Toronto-based Postmedia owns the National Post, Vancouver Sun, Calgary Herald and dozens of other publications.
The acquisition is subject to approval from the Nova Scotia Supreme Court and to “satisfactory outcomes” with unionized workers, the company said. It did not disclose any financial details.
A representative from Postmedia declined a request for an interview.
David Boyd, the court-appointed chief restructuring officer overseeing the operations of SaltWire and the Herald, issued a statement Tuesday saying the two Halifax-based companies have a long-standing tradition of delivering news and “diverse perspectives” to Atlantic Canadians through more than a dozen media titles.
“We are hopeful that all stakeholders can work together to complete the Postmedia transaction, which is intended to see Atlantic-based journalism publications continue,” Boyd said in a statement.
Magda Konieczna, a journalism professor at Concordia University in Montreal, said Postmedia is known for limiting its investments in local news.
“It makes me worry … about just how much more local news space will continue to be eroded through this acquisition,” Konieczna said in an interview. “Our local democracy needs more than the investment that Postmedia has been willing to put into local news.”
More help needed
Konieczna said federal programs, such as the Local Journalism Initiative and Canadian journalism labour tax credit, have helped struggling media businesses. But more help is needed, she said.
“We need policy that will help us build a local news ecosystem that is responsive to the needs of local communities.”
Lindgren, principal investigator for the Local News Research Project, said many media businesses resumed cutting costs and shutting down operations after the COVID-19 pandemic, when government subsidies dried up.
As well, she said advertising revenue has not recovered to pre-pandemic levels.
“All of the harsh realities…
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