When publishers gathered to hear successes, challenges: The 2024 Future of Independent Media Summit

Following the inaugural Future of Independent Media Summit, hosted by Press Forward in October 2024, publishers are coming together to strengthen the industry, despite an increasingly uncertain future.

The fall 2024 two-day event in Toronto brought together Press Forward members from across the country convened in person for the first time to craft a vision of the future of Canadian independent media, and how we can collectively work to build that future

“Building and supporting independent media in Canada is important work, but it can often feel like a solitary climb. It was so inspiring to connect with and learn from other publishers, academics, and other industry advocates who are also committed to the work,” Press Forward board member and publisher of The Resolve Matthew DiMera writes. 

“I was especially uplifted hearing from the successes and challenges of other BIPOC independent media leaders like Lela Savic, founding editor at La Converse, and Tai Huynh, editor at The Local.”

More than just a standard industry meeting, the summit was a one-of-a-kind opportunity for publishers to gather with partners from across industries like academia. The event was hosted at OCAD University which, through its Cultural Policy Hub and DemocracyXChange, has been looking at how the media’s challenges are impacting Canadian democracy. 

“Thanks to Press Forward, we’ve had the opportunity to convene with journalists, publishers, policymakers, researchers and funds from across Canada to consider how we can work together in addressing  these challenges through innovative design-thinking, collaboration and renewed investment,” says OCAD University President and Vice-Chancellor Ana Serrano.

That deep interest in communities and in innovation was on display at the summit as The Tyee publisher Jeanette Ageson sat down with La Converse’s Lela Savic and The Logic’s David Skok to hear a tale of two publishers. La Converse, driven by “dialogue journalism” (including a rap journalism school!) is challenged by their communities’ distrust of traditional journalism. Savic says “often we hear, ‘I don’t trust media. I don’t trust journalism but I trust you.’ That’s meaningful.” 

Meanwhile, the Logic’s subscriber-driven business struggled to find the right mix during the early days of the pandemic but now has a business driven by diverse revenue sources. “It’s our job to prove that our product is valuable,” said Skok. 

For many communities – whether geographic, professional or interest-driven – access to reliable and accessible information is not only crucial but creative. 

Culture magazine The Sprawl went analog: their publisher, Jeremy Klaszus uses a printing press to publish zine editions of the digital magazine. For the new independent news collective Unrigged, one neat trick was to create a digital widget that all their partner publications can use on their site to share and re-share one another’s work, similar to a newswire for emerging outlets. At The Resolve, publisher DiMera noted that their key innovation is to move at the speed that communities need, not at the speed of news. 

Writing that “the gathering sparked more ideas than I have room to list,”  Taproot Publishing’s Karen Unland said that Press Forward members come in many varieties, all with many different funding models and ways they serve their communities. But, she writes, “What we have in common is a deep connection to readers and members, as well as an interest in innovation.”

Whether they were sharing how their publication slots into Canada’s charity regime or how to get funding from foundations, Canadian media publishers were candid about the challenges they face. In fireside chats, they revealed the elements that make their businesses work. On panels, they commiserated over declining trust in an independent press. 

In one collaborative exercise using colourful post-it notes, publishers answered challenging questions, such as “how would they know if Canada had a thriving media sector.” 

Press Forward set out to bring together media publishers for the first-ever conference in Canada focused specifically on how to shape the future of media innovation in Canada in the midst of an escalating crisis. But, while the news industry may be struggling, for a few dozen media publishers and their partners, the messy work of strategizing and organizing a way forward has already begun.

Check out J-Source’s coverage