The duty launches its annual donation campaign today, with the support of the non-profit organization Les Amis du To have to. Your daily life has been propelled by a favorable wind in recent years, and it intends to continue on this momentum. This is why we turn today to you, dear readers and donors, whose commitment has always been the key to our success, to go further in our growth and transformation projects. Through its history, The duty was able to count on your support to fulfill its mission of informing Quebecers and contributing to the debate of ideas. Together, we have protected the unwavering values of independence, rigor and curiosity that have guided us since the founding of the To have toin 1910.
The duty demands overcoming for himself and the society that has supported him for 112 years. By the constancy of your commitment, you remind him of the importance of this mission.
In tune with social and technological trends, The duty was able, in 2016, to undertake a bold digital shift to expand its readership. With video coverage and an increased presence on social media, interactive content and, most recently, a daily news podcast, we are reaching an increasingly large and diverse audience. Add to that the conclusion of fair agreements with digital commerce giants, which is an important milestone in our revenue diversification strategy. We are relentlessly preparing for this digital future, because we know that rising generations get their information from mobile phones and social media. However, this growth does not overshadow our offer of printed content. In a context of declining print media and unprecedented labor shortages, producing and distributing a paper newspaper from Monday to Saturday is a real feat. We know that the habit of leafing through the newspaper every morning is deeply rooted in the lives of our readers and that is why we still maintain this product.
This year again, we can rejoice in the success of our business model based on print and digital subscriptions. Contrary to the trend of gratuity that marks the media environment in Quebec, this model is still the most viable avenue, because journalism is not free. Our team is the secret behind the value and quality of our content.
This model is the basis of the social contract that binds us to our community of support. It guarantees the continuation of our mission and our efforts to enrich our content offer, diversify our subjects and take a broader look at our world.
We have big ambitions. Your generosity will serve as a springboard for our future achievements.
Over the past year, our teams have continued to grow, both in our newsroom and in other departments of the organization. Whereas The duty has grown from 100 to 175 employees in three years, we are continuing the pace of hiring to increase production in key sectors such as investigation, the environment, data journalism, international coverage with the support of Transat and video . We have formed specialized and dynamic teams whose work has been rewarded with national and international awards. Consider, among other things, the work of Journalists of the Year Magdaline Boutros and Améli Pineda, who were crowned with this prestigious distinction by the Canadian Journalism Competition for their investigative series detailing the ravages of domestic violence in Quebec. With this report, they proved that journalistic work could have a real impact on the social issues it reveals. This notion of a combat diary is the precious legacy that is still very much alive and spans the eras of To have to since its foundation by Henri Bourassa.
The duty evolves, but it never forgets its roots. It wants to become a reflection of contemporary Quebec in all its richness, diversity and complexity. Help him accomplish this goal. Help him dream our society of tomorrow.
Once again this year, it will unfortunately not be possible to issue charitable receipts to our donors. We are still pursuing discussions with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) to obtain qualified donee status. We hope that our patience will soon be rewarded as we have removed all obstacles to our registration with the CRA. The controlling shareholder of To have to is the Trust The duty, a non-profit organization. Our unique structure guarantees the independence of the To have to and the continuation of its mission for journalistic purposes. We strongly believe that we possess all the attributes necessary to obtain a favorable response from the CRA.
Loyal readers and donors, it is to your sense of civic responsibility and your generosity that we appeal today to breathe a wind of inspiration and audacity into this coming year. Giving is helping The duty to write new pages in its history. Whether The duty shapes your understanding of the world, your support will shape its future.