Relief for The Porter : the Natashquan newspaper will finally be able to keep the services of its only journalist after the extension of funding granted by the Local Journalism Initiative (LJI), a federal fund supporting media that informs the country’s “underserved communities”.
The good news landed in the email box of director Annie-Jade Creamer-Éthier last week. “We have reinstated the second tranche of funding so that your project can continue,” the IJL wrote to her, reversing a previous decision that had cut off funding to Porterthe only written newspaper devoted to eastern Minganie.
“It’s a relief,” sighs the director, who took up her post in October 2023.
The cut in financial support put the hiring of the newspaper’s only full-time reporter at risk. Without the IJL’s contribution of about $40,000, The Porterdistributed free of charge each week in around 560 copies, was losing the means to hire a journalist.
The certainty of having the money until the next application period at the IJL now guarantees the newspaper that it will have the food to support its editorial staff. Faced with an uncertain professional future with The Porterjournalist Julien Greischner, however, looked for — and landed — another part-time job.
“Julien will continue to contribute to the newspaper part-time and write a few articles each week,” explains Annie-Jade Creamer-Éthier. A happy coincidence of circumstances even allows the Porter to double its staff.
“A journalism student from Montreal will spend the end of his summer in Natashquan,” explains the director. “While staying on the Côte-Nord, he agreed to extend his stay in Natashquan to complete a mandatory 140-hour internship with us. He will start next week and we will even be able to pay him: the IJL has accepted this slightly more “freelance” formula!”
Longer-term funding for the newspaper remains uncertain, however. The federal government has extended the Local Journalism Initiative through 2027, but The Porter will have to submit a new application at the end of its funding.
“We are a little apprehensive, we don’t feel like we have a total victory,” says the director. The weekly is also discussing a merger with the local community radio station to overcome the obstacles that are hampering the funding and recruitment of media in isolated regions.
“The radio station has the funding, but it has not had the resources since the departure of the director and the host, the first for retirement, the second to take on other challenges,” says Annie-Jade Creamer-Éthier.
The future, however, looks better than it did just a few weeks ago for The Porter. Her journalist promises to return full-time to the newspaper once her part-time contract is honored. For the future, the director is hopeful that she will still be entitled to the IJL fund next year.
“The decision to discontinue the grant follows the death of the former director, Nicole Lessard, and the inactivity of the newspaper that followed for almost a year,” concludes M.me Creamer-Éthier. Next year, I remain optimistic that we will meet the criteria again.”