Origins of Oppression
With slight understanding of Afrikaner history, the media skim the surface of a complex story
Marq de Villiers has been the editor of Toronto Life since 1981. Born in South Africa, he was educated at the University of Cape Town and the London School of Economics, where he received a diploma in International Relations. He has worked for Reuters in England and Spain, as a feature writer for The Cape […]
Mother Courage
For 30 years, Christa Singer's films have cast a caring light on the disadvantaged
I do wish he would call me back, I can never make him understand that we need to have these things on paper. Wait, I’ve got to stop for some food.” Christa Singer’s car makes an unexpected turn onto Toronto’s Eglinton Avenue. (‘Have you ever heard of Grano? Oh, and I must tell you… eeoow […]
Central Canada’s National Newspaper
Outside the Toronto/Ottawa/Montreal axis, The Globe and Mail's coverage is largely lightweight
On October 23, 1980, The Globe and Mail launched its national edition, quoting publisher A. Roy Megarry: “There probably is not a better time in Canada’s history for a national newspaper to emerge. With the constitutional debate, with regional aspirations growing ‘and with demands for more autonomy from the provinces, there is a greater need […]
This Mag at 20
Bringing new life to an old dissenter
Twenty Years and Still no Respect” ran the headline on the editorial in last October’s This Magazine. True, the Toronto-based publication was celebratingits20thanniversary.But This Magazine gets a fair measure of respect. Since its genesis in 1966 as This Magazine Is About Schools, when it was a champion of the free-school movement, This Mag has become […]
The Apprenticeship of Daniel Richler
From the loose cloth of rock commentary to the tight fit of The Journal with undiminished passion
Daniel Richler, confused, peered into the box holding his going-away present: Were the beige corduroy jacket with dark brown elbow patches, the hand-woven tie and the matching brown Wallabees a joke or not? The CITY-TV staff around him at McVeigh’s New Windsor Tavern were cracking up. The gift, of course, was his new CBC uniform. […]
Cheques and Imbalances
Last August, 13-year-o1d Gary Rangasamy arrived at Scarborough General Hospital from his home in Guyana for a special surgical procedure to reduce the size of his right arm. It had grown to more than twice its normal size, a result of neurofibromatosis, better known as Elephant Man’s disease. The boy’s operation presented the media with […]
One Side to Every Story
The bad news is that more and more 'good news' really isn't news at all
The item was legitimate news, there’s no argument about that. And it was also legitimately placed, well down in CFTO’s early evening line-up. If there was something “wrong” with the item, the viewers never knew it. But something was indeed “wrong.” The story, as introduced by newsreader Tom Gibney and narrated by reporter Jim Wicks […]
The Voice of Another Village
How did Now show that an alternative weekly could survive and prosper in the Toronto of the '80s? By getting down to business
“We had the advantage of being extremely naive-had we known anything about publishing, we never would have started the paper.” Edwin Fancher, co-founder of the Village Voice. The Great American Newspaper, by Kevin Michael McAuliffe. “We were convinced we could make it work as a business. It seems a bit ridiculous when we look back […]
The Chinese Have an Image For it
Our attention is first commanded by a sound vaguely resembling a gong. A flash of deep blue follows, and a graphic movement unfolds. It’s 7 p.m. and time for Peoples China to sit down to watch the news. There’s no glamor here, no middle-aged beauties like Jan Tennant, no sexually provocative types like the late […]
The Public Right Not to Know
In the vast majority of cases, court coverage presents few problems for reporters. Once a trial or hearing commences, virtually anything said by the judge, lawyers, and witnesses on the stand can be reported verbatim, without fear of retribution. Like Parliament and the legislatures, what is heard is “privileged,” which means the laws of libel […]
