The Department of Canadian Heritage is funding researchers to build a directory of Canadian news outlets considered trustworthy and reliable, according to Access To Information records.The government-approved Local News Directory is intended to help policymakers identify communities needing intervention while directing Canadians toward news sources they can trust, departmental documents show.“All of this points to a need to create a comprehensive, regularly updated Canadian local news directory,” said an April 26 Heritage memo.“The information will help policymakers and others make more data-informed decisions about where interventions are needed and will help people struggling to find local news they can trust.”The memo, titled Building A Public Directory Of Local News Outlets In Canada, said recent global events demonstrated a need for reliable information.“Recent events including the COVID-19 pandemic and rise of authoritarianism around the world have laid bare the increasing fallibility of democratic institutions,” it said. “Reliable news and information are part of the solution.”Canadian Heritage had spent $100,000 on the three-year project to date. Records censored the total budgeted cost.Researchers at Toronto Metropolitan University, Laval University and Concordia University are compiling the directory. None responded to questions.Departmental records said the directory of media considered trustworthy would reflect outlets designated as “qualified journalism organizations.”The Canada Revenue Agency uses the qualified journalism organization designation for media organizations seeking access to federal subsidies, including payroll rebates worth up to $29,750 annually per eligible newsroom employee.“The Directory will serve decision makers,” said a separate Canadian Heritage memo titled Report On The Local News Directory Project.“For Canadian Heritage, the directory will help guide the department’s policy and program decisions.”.The project comes after disclosures that federal managers circulated lists of reporters who should not receive accreditation for routine access to federal officials.“None of us has criteria that reflect the reality of independent journalists,” read a March 11 staff email from the Department of Immigration.Another email said federal media accreditation rules were intended to ensure government resources went toward providing access to “high quality information.”“Media accreditation criteria were developed to ensure resources we allocate genuinely support access to high quality information,” it said.The email said a March 11 meeting involving managers from the Privy Council and other departments “revealed inconsistencies across departments” over accreditation practices.Separate Canadian Heritage documents have also linked government media policy to objectives including Canadian sovereignty and “social cohesion.”A Sept. 24 briefing note titled Fostering Canadian Identity To Strengthen Our Sovereignty And Social Cohesion warned some Canadians were becoming disengaged.“Certain segments of the population remain disengaged,” said the note. “There are worrying trends.”The document cited foreign interference and online disinformation among threats to Canadian society.“There are foreign state efforts to drive social division,” it said.“Other trends including disinformation campaigns launched by foreign actors, the amplification of divisive content on social media platforms and a growing overreliance on foreign owned platforms and content threaten our information sovereignty and continue to drive polarization and undermine our social cohesion.”The briefing note also described CBC as central to Canada's cultural identity and sovereignty.“The CBC is a pillar of our cultural identity and a cornerstone of our sovereignty,” it said.“Our cultural integrity is under increasing pressure from foreign digital platforms that are reshaping the media landscape and how Canadians consume content. Despite these challenges, the CBC remains a pillar on which we can build our future, a vital institution.”
