The Shattered Mirror: News, Democracy and Trust in the Digital Age

The media mirror — how media reflects the communities it represents — is shattered. Is a lifeline needed?

The Shattered Mirror: News, Democracy and Trust in the Digital Age, is a landmark Public Policy Forum report published in January 2017. It looks at the state of a much weaker news media in Canada, severely disrupted by the digital age.

It is the first major study of the state of the news media in since milestone reports by Senator Keith Davey and Tom Kent in the 1970s and 1980s, as well as a Senate report in 2006, all of which were concerned about the concentration of ownership and its dangers. This is a forward-looking report, making 12 bold and specific recommendations that address two broad, key questions:

Does the news media, and particularly the civic function of journalism — the coverage of the public institutions, public affairs and communities — need support?
If so, how can we ensure it does not lock in privilege and stifle innovation, and how can accountability and commonweal be safeguarded without compromising the independence of the media?