With armchair art and theatre critics proliferating online, with media cutbacks reducing the number of those who critique for a living, and with celebrity news trumping cultural coverage, are traditional art critics less--or more--relevant than they once were? Ben Brantley, chief theatre critic, The New York Times; Robert Cushman, theatre art critic, The National Post; Peter Schjeldahl, art critic, The New Yorker; and moderator Sara Angel, visual arts journalist and Trudeau Doctoral Scholar at the University of Toronto's Department of Art, explored the state of art criticism.

Listen Now:

 Standard Podcasts: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download | Embeddable Player | Hits (Loading)

In the aftermath of the Newtown shooting tragedy, journalists questioned the role of social media in breaking news. Is Twitter to blame for the spread of false information or is mainstream media passing the buck? If in doubt, should we publish what we think we know?  Is verification still the essence of journalism? Andy Carvin, senior social media strategist at NPR and author of Distant Witness; Esther Enkin, ombudsman for CBC English services; and Mathew Ingram, senior writer at GigaOM, discussed media ethics in the rush to report breaking news. Kathy English, public editor at the Toronto Star, moderated.

New tools, devices and technologies have proven to be powerful in reshaping journalism, whether in content distribution and consumption or in the newsroom structure itself. With the federal government committing $400 million to fund early-stage, venture capital start-ups, could this boost journalistic innovation? What, exactly, does media innovation look like? Zach Seward, senior editor at Atlantic Media's device-centric business news venture Quartz; Michael De Monte, CEO of ScribbleLive; David Skok, co-author of Breaking News: Mastering the Art of Disruptive Innovation in Journalism and director of digital for Global News; and moderator Marissa Nelson, acting director of digital media for CBC News and Centres, discussed what traditional media companies can learn from tech start-ups and how innovation can be fostered within newsrooms.

Listen Now:

 Standard Podcasts: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download | Embeddable Player | Hits (Loading)

When audiences choose Bieber over Syria and Twitter over television, what's a news network to do? Are cutbacks in investigative and foreign reporting the price networks naturally have to pay? What is the role of the conventional news broadcast when the networks all have 24/7 news cable channels? Join Wendy Freeman, president of CTV News; Troy Reeb, senior vice-president of news and station operations at Global News; Jonathan Whitten, executive director of CBC News Content; and moderator Steve Paikin, anchor and senior editor of the TVO's The Agenda with Steve Paikin, as they discuss how best to deliver quality journalism while keeping ever-fragmenting audiences.

Listen Now:

 Standard Podcasts [01:17:00m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download | Embeddable Player | Hits (Loading)

Newspapers came late – and somewhat reluctantly to the Web. Then they embraced "digital first," SEO and all things Internet as the way ahead. But, with digital dollars stalling, what’s next? Video, longreads, quick hits? Lou Clancy, vice-president of editorial and editor-in-chief of Postmedia News; Michael Cooke, editor of the Toronto Star; Charlotte Empey, editor-in-chief of Metro English Canada; and John Stackhouse, editor-in-chief of The Globe and Mail discussed the latest challenges to journalism and strategies to save the news business. Scott White, editor-in-chief of The Canadian Press, moderated.

Listen Now:

 Standard Podcasts [01:33:06m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download | Embeddable Player | Hits (Loading)

It's clear that between evaporating business models and dispersing audiences that legacy media is on the run. Would it be better to blow it all up and start over or can the dinosaurs dance to a new soundtrack? David Carr, business columnist and culture reporter for The New York Times, examines the value of traditional media in a very cluttered, confusing age. In conversation with Michael Enright, host of CBC Radio One's The Sunday Edition.

Listen Now:

 Standard Podcasts: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download | Embeddable Player | Hits (Loading)

'The First Casualty' in the Age of High-Tech Warfare

Under Fire: Journalists in Combat is a new Canadian documentary that explores post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and substance abuse among war correspondents. This CJF Forum examines the changing nature of covering war, the psychological costs of war reporting, and the need for change in newsroom culture to help detect and address the problems correspondents face. Join moderator Tony Burman, Toronto Star foreign affairs columnist and former managing director of Al Jazeera English in a roundtable discussion including: psychiatrist Dr. Anthony Feinstein, featured in the documentary, along with Murray Brewster, Parliamentary defence reporter and senior war correspondent for The Canadian Press; Matthew Fisher, foreign affairs columnist with Postmedia; and Lisa LaFlamme, chief anchor and senior editor of CTV National News.

Listen Now:

 Standard Podcasts [01:32:41m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download | Embeddable Player | Hits (Loading)

Citizen feedback, bloggers, virtual story meetings…these are just a few of the innovations in content creation under way in journalism. The editorial gatekeepers are standing aside and making way for you. Join us for a CJF Forum on the benefits and risks to editorial quality and find out how new ideas are building audiences.

Making citizen contributions work with moderator Wilf Dinnick, founding editor and CEO of OpenFile, and speakers Dan Dunsky, executive producer of TVO's The Agenda with Steve Paikin; Andrew Lundy, director of Globalnews.ca; Jennifer MacMillan, communities editor with The Globe and Mail; and Rachel Nixon, director of digital media for CBC News and Centres.

Listen Now:

 Standard Podcasts [01:37:33m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download | Embeddable Player | Hits (Loading)

John Paton's controversial strategy for saving the newspaper industry is transforming a chain of 150 papers including established titles like The Denver Post, The Detroit News and the San Jose Mercury News. Paton, a former publisher of the London Free Press and Sun Media executive and now CEO of New York-based Digital First Media, believes that digital is where the money is and he’s got the track record to back that up. Named “Publisher of the Year” in 2009 by Editor & Publisher, Paton shared his insights, followed by a conversation with Douglas Knight, president of St. Joseph Media.

Listen Now:

 Standard Podcasts [01:27:53m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download | Embeddable Player | Hits (Loading)

Join moderator Jackson Proskow, Global Toronto's municipal affairs reporter; Robyn Doolittle, Toronto Star urban affairs reporter; Royson James, Toronto Star municipal affairs columnist; Marcus Gee, The Globe and Mail Toronto columnist; and Jerry Agar, host of The Jerry Agar Show on Newstalk 1010, for a discussion about the media's relationship with the Mayor's office.

Listen Now:

 Standard Podcasts [01:26:17m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download | Embeddable Player | Hits (Loading)