Explaining the federal government’s new Special Measures for Journalism fund

In mid-October, the Department of Canadian Heritage announced a program to assist publishers called the ‘Special Measures for Journalism’ fund. This is the second and final chance to apply for short-term post-pandemic recovery funding.

With the December 6 deadline to submit applications fast approaching, we wanted to provide some assistance to members on whether this is a funding opportunity your publication should take advantage of.

• What does this program do?
  This program is a special temporary fund. It is designed to help free non-daily news publications that do not receive funding through the Aid to Publishers program but who continue to experience financial challenges caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
  
  
• Who is eligible to apply for this program?
  This program is aimed to provide financial assistance to controlled-circulation community newspapers. It is open to magazines and community (non-daily) newspapers, in print or digital formats, that are not recipients of Aid to Publishers funding. See the FAQ that we posted in Jul 2020.
• What do I need to do in order to apply?
  Before applying, please read the application guidelines in their entirety. You should also have handy your organization’s articles of incorporation, a blank cheque or a direct deposit enrolment request form, and be able to provide proof of corporate signing authority. Once you have all these documents near by, please access the Canadian Heritage Funding Portal account and complete the steps as outlined to complete your application.

  Please note that the application is lengthy. As such, anyone interested in applying should make sure to leave themselves enough time. The application requires access through a Chrome web browser.

• I’m still not sure if I qualify. Who can I talk to for help?
  You can contact the department directly for assistance. They are available by both telephone and email. For telephone support, please call:1-866-811-0055.
  If you’d prefer to correspond with officials via email, you can reach them at: PCH.fondsdesperiodiquescanada-canadaperiodicalfund.PCH@canada.ca.