Supreme Court agrees to hear Vice Media case about press freedoms

The Supreme Court of Canada agreed on Thursday to weigh in on a case in which the ability of journalists to do their work conflicts with the ability of police and prosecutors to do theirs.The court’s decision to grant Vice Media leave to appeal follows a ruling by Ontario's highest court that reporter Ben Makuch turn over background materials to the RCMP related to interviews he did with a suspected terrorist.

The materials at issue relate to three stories Makuch wrote in 2014 on a Calgary man, Farah Shirdon, 22, charged in absentia with various terrorism-related offences. The articles were largely based on conversations Makuch had with Shirdon, who was said to be in Iraq, via the online instant messaging app Kik Messenger.

With court permission, RCMP sought access to Makuch's screen captures and logs of those chats. Makuch refused to hand them over.RCMP and the Crown argued successfully at two levels of court that access to the chat logs were essential to the ongoing investigation into Shirdon, who may or may not be dead. They maintained that journalists have no special rights to withhold crucial information. (CP)

Full story by CP's Colin Perkel

John Doyle about the Matt Lauer firing

John Doyle writes:
"Television fame often makes people delusional. It makes people who talk about themselves on the air feel terrifically important. Fame and recognition on the street adds to the hubris, to the delusion that the TV star is a really, really interesting person. Add in the entitlements that come with TV stardom – there's always a limo to take you to the studio and an assistant to get your coffee just the way you like it – and hauteur flourishes. Common sense fades away. Some people start believing their power as a focal point for a popular TV show makes them untouchable. Given the number of men revealed to have behaved inappropriately, it seems men are particularly susceptible."
The full column

Postmedia to close community newspapers in Stratford, London, St. Thomas

A deal between media giants Postmedia and Torstar will result in the closing of many community newspapers, the CBC reports.
In this region, Our London will be closed, as will the St. Mary's Journal-Argus, the St. Mary's Weekender, the St. Thomas/Elgin Weekly News and the Stratford City Gazette.
The St. Mary's Journal-Argus has been publishing since the mid 1850s.
"This transaction allows Postmedia to focus on strategic areas and core products, and allows us to continue with a suite of community-based products, in a deeply disrupted industry," said Postmedia CEO Paul Godfrey in a statement.
Torstar bought eight community publications, seven daily newspapers and two free dailies from Postmedia.
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TIME Inc. sold to Meredith and Koch brothers

Media company Meredith announced Sunday that it has agreed to buy the 95-year-old magazine's publisher, Time Inc., for $2.8 billion. Acquiring the legendary magazine business gives Meredith control of dozens of other big titles such as People, Sports Illustrated, Fortune and Entertainment Weekly. Meredith already publishes several top magazines, including Parents, Shape and Better Homes & Gardens. The two media companies are worth roughly the same on the stock market. To finance the deal, Iowa-based Meredith is taking on some serious debt, borrowing about $3.6 billion from an assortment of lenders. It also plans to sell a sizable chunk of the combined business -- $650 million worth -- to a company owned by Charles and David Koch. The Koch brothers are mega-donors to the Republican party and conservative causes.  
Meredith said in a statement that the Koch brothers will not have seats on the board "and will have no influence on Meredith's editorial or managerial operations." The company said the Koch brothers' investment underscores the significant "unlocked value" from the merger. (CNN)
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Amanda Lang rejoining CTV and BNN

Amanda Lang will rejoin Business News Network (BNN) in January 2018, CTV announced today. In addition, Lang will  contribute to a number of Bell Media programs including CTV News and iHeartRadio, the announcement said.
Lang has been covering business news in North America for 20 years. She started her journalism career at The Globe and Mail and then the National Post. As New York correspondent, she was a key part of the team that launched BNN's predecessor, ROBTV, in 1999. She then moved over to  CNN as a reporter and anchor.
Media release