It has been a couple of weeks since our LJI launch, and our inboxes have been stuffed with your Local Journalism Initiative questions. Certain topics keep coming up, including specific questions, which we will answer in these news bulletins. We present answers to some of your most pressing questions that we have received over the past few days.

In this bulletin, we are covering the aims of the Local Journalism Initiative and why this matters.

Changes in the media landscape in Canada, including cutbacks, closures and mergers, have impacted residents’ ability to know what is going on in their local communities, in some regions creating  news deserts and areas of news poverty.

news deserts: communities that do not have daily or community newspapers, do not have access to journalistic information about community institutions and issues through community radio, television, or other public or private broadcaster.

areas of news poverty: communities who do not have access to journalistic content about community issues and institutions through a daily newspaper or public or private broadcaster, and whose only source of local news – being a newspaper or community TV or radio station – demonstrates significant gaps in coverage of community issues and institutions due to a lack of capacity.

The Local Journalism Initiative aims to address gaps in coverage in communities that do not have access to journalistic information about civic institutions and issues.

The Local Journalism Initiative aims to strengthen coverage of civic institutions such as courts, school boards, hospitals, town halls, councils and legislatures in underserved communities. These are the stories that matter. Residents rely on accurate, diverse and relevant news about their communities and about what is going on around them.

To send us a question about the LJI, email LJI@newsmediacanada.ca and it might show up in a future news bulletin.