Canadian Media News In Brief – PETA threatens legal action against Astral Media

The Canadian Media Concentration Research Project has released its report looking at the network media economy, including the state of competition in the mobile wireless market,  broadcast, pay and streaming TV services, and advertising across all media in Canada between 1984 and 2017. Among its highlights: Bell, Telus, Rogers, Shaw and Quebecor accounted for 73.4 per cent of the $80 billion network media economy last year, up from 72.1 per cent the year before. Bell is the biggest player in Canada by far—nearly twice the size of its closest rivals, Telus and Rogers—and single-handedly accounted for 28 per cent of all revenue last year—up by one percent from a year earlier. Telus emerged as the second largest communications and media company in Canada for the first time last year. The report also delves into Google and Facebook’s growing dominance in the advertising market, saying that while the digital giants dominate internet advertising, that does not extend to the rest of the ad market or the $80.3 billion media economy in Canada as a whole. The report concludes that “the more intractable, but seldom recognized problem is that total ad spending in Canada appears to be declining on a per capita basis and relative to the national economy.”

Canadian Heritage is contributing $4.5 million in funding to a project in Halifax that will see the city’s former World Trade and Convention Centre transformed into a multidisciplinary cultural hub that will include a film and TV production centre. The Link Performing Arts Society will also receive $5.7 million in provincial funding. The non-profit group is partnered with Culture Link, a community interest company helmed by film producer Marc Almon (Weirdos) and film and TV production veteran Rob Power. Organizations who’ve expressed interest in long-term leases at the centre include DHX Media, Sonic Entertainment, the Atlantic Filmmakers Co-operative (AFCOOP), and the Devour Food Film Festival, among others.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is threatening legal action against the City of Toronto and Astral Media for removing  a series of anti-Canada Goose bus shelter ads. PETA says the ads, which initially went up in September, were scheduled to run for four weeks, but were pulled after less than 24 hours. Featuring images of the animals captioned with “I’m a living being, not a piece of fur trim” and “I’m a living being, not jacket filling,” they were strategically placed between Canada Goose’s Toronto headquarters and the home of company CEO Dani Reiss. Astral parent company, Bell Media, says the ads violate the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards under restrictions prohibiting ads from disparaging organizations or causing public ridicule.

The Youth Media Alliance (YMA) Andra Sheffer Scholarship has been awarded to two candidates for the first time in its three-year history. Awarded annually to an outstanding student who intends to pursue a career in the field of youth content for the screen, this year’s winners are Julia Dillon-Davis, a Masters student in the Child and Youth Care program at the University of Victoria and Nour Mallouh, a student in the Children’s Media program at Centennial College. The two laureates will receive accreditation, valued at $1,995 USD, compliments of Brunico, to attend the Kidscreen Summit in Miami, as well as a $1,500 travel grant. They will also receive accreditation for the 2019 Banff World Media Festival. The award comes with the benefit of personalized mentoring and meetings with YMA representatives, as well as the opportunity to visit the studios of CBC and TVO and meet with industry representatives.

RTDNA Canada has called for nominations for its Lifetime Achievement Award. Nominees should have at least 30 years of outstanding service and continued excellence during the course of their career in journalism or news management. Past recipients include Lynn Burry and Terry Seguin (East), Bernard St-Laurent, James Stewart and Brian Thomas (Central), Sheila Coles and Geoff Stickle (Prairies), Rick Cluff, Hudson Mack and Wayne Williams (West), and Sandie Rinaldo (Network). The nomination deadline is Jan. 11, 2019. Find more information here.

The Atlantic Journalism online entry system is now open to entries for the 2018 news year. The deadline for submissions is midnight on Friday, Feb. 1. As well as the traditional newspaper, radio, television, magazine and online categories, the AJAs has added two new categories: Excellence in Digital Journalism – Enterprise/Long Form and Excellence in Digital Journalism – Breaking News/Daily. Go to AJAs.ca for entry details, category descriptions and judging guidelines. Three finalists from each category will be announced in early April with presentation to the Gold and Silver winners on May 11 at the Halifax Marriott Harbourfront Hotel.

The Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ) has opened entries for the 2018 CAJ Awards program. Find more info on the award categories here. The deadline for entries is Jan. 14.

The Atkinson Fellowship in Public Policy application process is now open, funding indepth journalism that has the power to influence public policy. The deadline for letters of intent is Feb. 11. While open to research ideas on a wide range of topics, preference will be given to issues at the forefront of public policy debate. Find more info here. The winner will be announced in June at The Canadian Journalism Foundation Gala.

Time has chosen “The Guardians,” a group of journalists who have been targeted for their work, as Person of the Year. The group includes Jamal Khashoggi, the Washington Post contributor killed at the Saudi Arabian consulate in Istanbul in October; Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, two Reuters journalists arrested in Myanmar; and the reporters of Maryland’s Capital Gazette, the newspaper where five employees were murdered by a gunman last June.

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