Journalism school projects help bring First Nations drinking water issues back into spotlight
Journalism schools from across Canada have helped bring the issue of long term boil water advisories on First Nations back into the public eye.
Last week Clean Water, Broken Promises debuted on broadcast, online and in print publications across the country. The stories published as part of the project focused on First Nations communities that have been living under long term boil water advisories.
Annie Burns-Pieper, managing editor of the Institute for Investigative Journalism at Concordia University in Montreal, which organized the national project, explained university students uncovered some concerning practices.
Students at the University of Regina School of Journalism and First Nations University of Canada have released an investigation into First Nations water issues across Canada.
Canada steps up for journalism
“Canada has shown leadership in securing a future for journalism but there is more that can be done.”
This year, Canada refused to let journalism fail. In 2021, that decision will show results.
The Canadian government has launched a new program to address the hundreds of journalism jobs being lost, the dozens of news organizations being shuttered, and the obliteration of the old revenue model for journalism. The grants from the Local Journalism Initiative, remarkably, hit news organizations just as the COVID-19 lockdown did last March.
The $11.4 million (CAN) spent funded 213 positions. This saved a lot of jobs and kept journalists reporting in their communities, uncovering news that would have gone unreported. I predict that these far-flung journalists will be a stabilizing force for Canada’s democracy in 2021.