A Canadian federal agency has outlined plans to create news articles for selected media outlets, with all stories reviewed and fact-checked by federal employees before publication. Blacklock's Reporter says the initiative, led by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), a Crown corporation, aims to increase public awareness of its work by sharing content through “trusted media platforms.” The cost to taxpayers for this program remains undisclosed.“Significant shifts in the overall media landscape have affected how people receive and perceive information,” stated a notice to contractors, noting the challenge of capturing attention amid today’s digital information overload. The IDRC aims to strategically “connect with its target audiences” through “trusted media platforms they already consult on a regular basis,” according to the project proposal Production Of General Interest Articles.Under the plan, IDRC will select themes, have final editorial control, and review the articles for accuracy before publication. The focus will be on Canadian French-language media, especially a “French language, mass audience magazine based in Canada.”The initiative is intended to bolster “the importance and relevance for Canadians” of the centre’s international development work, particularly in global issues, foreign affairs, and research supported by the IDRC. “This project also contributes to supporting French-speaking journalists and Québec media actors in contributing to building an environment favourable to global issues and international affairs,” the notice added.Established in 1970, the IDRC currently employs 375 staff in Canada and operates offices in several global locations, including New Delhi and Nairobi. The centre hopes the project will foster “recognition of the value and relevance” of its work through coordinated media coverage.This initiative is separate from the $595 million media subsidy that provides government-approved publishers with annual rebates, but it is reminiscent of a similar program run by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) from 2006 to 2009. During that period, CIDA paid media outlets $4.7 million to publish articles that highlighted its projects, including a $38,493 payment to Le Devoir for coverage of its Afghan programs and a $15,000 grant to the United Church Observer for an article on Ethiopian coffee. In retrospect, The Walrus magazine’s then-editor Shelly Ambrose reflected critically on a CIDA-funded photo essay, saying, “We would be extremely unhappy to publish this material knowing it was funded in this way.”The Western Standard doesn't accept any government subsidies.
