Don’t get mad at the legacy media companies, just start supporting the little guys

Every day I shake my head when hearing people complain about the legacy media.

Also, I laugh because I read a lot of articles and watch news from both old-school media and independent media companies, and it’s clear that the “legacy media” aren’t really doing their jobs anymore – at least not to the standards they should be.

Almost everything is editorialized to an extent, and everything needs to be taken with a grain of salt and a questioning mind.

Whether it’s angling stories to support a political party (on any side of the aisle) or bowing down to advertisers or even agreeing to favourably cover a new hospital build (yep, it happens).

It started a long time ago, and I noticed it a little bit as an aspiring journalist fresh out of J-school in 2004, but it really got bad when the pandemic newscasts were almost entirely sponsored by pharmaceutical companies.

Yeah, when my COVID news update is sponsored by the companies set to make millions off a vaccine, my journalist mind starts to ask a lot of questions (in fact, anyone who followed my OPEDs for The Bay 88.7 FM during the pandemic will recall I was on the side of common sense, not the mainstream talking points).

I’m not a conspiracy theorist by any means. However, I do believe in people’s greed and desire for power – and that’s why I always say, “when you want to get to truth of a conspiracy, just follow the money.”

The money is the real problem. Journalists and media members need to get paid like everyone else (more so even considering they’re providing a necessary service).

Back in the day when the readership or viewership were willing to pay for the news, then it was much easier for journalists to just do their job and adhere to the highest integrity standards.

The minute advertisers with agendas started putting money into media outlets – and the public stopped paying full price – is when the media’s line in the sand for “honest” reporting began to shift.

Eventually the media, particularly print and digital news, had to offer “free” options to their readers and rely totally on advertising for revenue.

There are many media members, who in order to keep their jobs and support their families, have had to slant articles, tow a certain line, stick to the “talking points,” and pretty much sell their soul to advertisers.

There are so many more who ended up working with marketing and public/media relations roles because it felt more honest than pretending to be a journalist.

It has been sad to be a part of that process over the years. Seeing once proud institutions and bastions of truth turned into nothing more than bird cage fodder. It happened nationally (Sun Media is the perfect example) and locally (Torstar’s Metroland division took fantastic community papers, including The Huntsville Forester, Bracebridge Examiner, and Gravenhurst Banner and decimated them).

Postmedia also got in on the act, buying up a huge number of weekly’s owned by Sun Media (including one I worked for called What’s Up Muskoka) and then gutting them or outright shutting them down (apparently all they wanted was the dailies).

What’s worse is our tax dollars are funding these big media companies through grants and federal supports. How does the CBC do truly honest journalism when the party in power is footing it’s bills.

Locally in Muskoka, Muskoka Region (Metroland) is benefitting from full federal funding for a “local journalism initiative” journalist who is not really “local,” but not getting any pushback for callously cutting over 600 staff members and offering “settlements” rather than full compensation.

So, apparently, they can still have an employee funded by our tax dollars but can’t pay the staff they hired.

Of course, the “news” coming from that situation is soft at best and anyone supporting that company is clueless to what’s really going on (no matter how many times I try to shed light on the issue).

Though it looks like I’m pointing all my fingers at the big media companies and saying, “it’s all your fault,” that would also be disingenuous.

There is plenty of blame to go around.

At some point, the general public from every generation must look in the mirror and say, “it’s our fault too.”

Why should the public take some of the blame?

It’s because the desire to ingest free media has led to the need for big money advertising with agendas to creep into the journalism game. Obviously, we’re generalizing here.

So, instead of paying for quality journalism and media, we’ve de-evolved into a society willing to accept anything fed to us if it’s fitting our own narratives and doesn’t cost us anything.

We’re poorer off for it and as you can see daily, society in North America is becoming less intelligent and more susceptible to propaganda.

But there is a solution to the issue: support local independent media outlets by offering a donation or paying for a subscription. Or, if you want it to be free, send some quality companies with good business practices their way to advertise (who don’t have politically motivated agendas).

Stop reading, watching and following the legacy media outlets (even those pretending to be “community news”) and start supporting truly local media in your communities. And see who is advertising – is it a good mom and pop shop or honest business? If so, that’s great.

In which case, subscribe to their news site or blog so they can keep growing and finding quality advertisers to help foot the bill.

If not, maybe find someone else to support.

There are plenty of independent journalists and media members willing to put in the work, but they need the funds to do it.

It’s not free to run a quality website or blog. It’s not free to take your podcasts, photography and videography to the next level.

The more funds that these independent media outlets receive, the more they can do and the more journalists they can hire to give you the quality news you deserve.

So, think about that as you navigate the never-ending nonsense thrown at you from every Tom, Dick, Harry, Karen and Sally out there.

To end this off on a positive note: Thank you to everyone who has been supporting what we’re trying to build here. Hopefully you’ll take the time to tell your friends and keep giving love to the little guys.