Arts reporter Stephen Cooke
On what is one of the longest episodes in Examineradio’s history, we devote almost the entire show to marking the auspicious occasion of the one-year anniversary of the Chronicle Herald strike.
First we speak with veteran arts reporter Stephen Cooke about the cautious optimism surrounding the current round of negotiations between the union and management and the dearth of in-depth arts criticism in Halifax.
We also speak with two experts in the newspaper industry and modern journalism: Robert McChesney is a professor of communication at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. He’s a co-founder of Free Press, an advocacy group that “…fights to … curb runaway media consolidation, protect press freedom, and ensure diverse voices are represented in our media.” He’s also the co-author of The Death and Life of American Journalism.
Rick Edmonds is a media business analyst at the Poynter Institute in Tampa, FL.
Finally, CKDU’s Francella Fiallos was at the demonstration in front of the Chronicle Herald offices this past Monday. She spoke with some of the striking workers as well as politicians and supporters.
I just wanted to say thanks for another great week of informative information. I’m hoping enough people care about our future state of affairs to support our striking brothers and sisters of the Chronicle Herald! What these people bring to the table is years of experience, knowledge, and expertise that has covered Nova Scotia for almost as long as Nova Scotia has been a province. These folks are like a living museum on the history of Nova Scotia when it comes to newspapers! Please don’t let it die! Yes, the people of the province all play a part in this one for sure. All the different directions encompassed under the heading of a strike do not provide clarity for the reason to keep this paper around with getting an agreement with the striking members. These striking members are the core of the paper, as well as the owner. The balance has been shifted, and so has the news. If the owner wants to turf the people who covered the news for the last thirty years, and hire scabs to do the job. Maybe he should change the name of the paper to suit what the scope of his direction is and the skills of his new employees are. The last provincial paper ever will be dead. Sadly a cloak of silence on anything in Nova Scotia going on will be silenced. For unbiased reporting Nova Scotia will come in last. Just saying! :-))