OTTAWA — The Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ) today announced the launch of the 2020 Canadian Newsroom Diversity Survey, calling it Canada’s first representative survey of diversity in media.
Following three years of consultation with experts in survey design and media diversity, the survey will help to gather hard data about who works in Canadian media, says the CAJ’s press release announcing the survey’s launch.
“The glaring lack of diversity in Canadian newsrooms is no secret,” said CAJ past president Karyn Pugliese, in the press release. “But without sufficient data collection, it is impossible to understand the full scope of the problem and, ultimately, work towards a Canadian media landscape that reflects the society it serves.”
The survey is being sent to the editor-in-chief, or their equivalent, at radio, television, digital and print outlets across the country. The CAJ says it will maintain a running list of the newsrooms that have been sent the survey and will provide regular updates on which newsrooms have responded.
“As the country’s only national professional association for journalists, we are in a unique position to conduct this sort of media diversity survey and encourage all newsrooms to participate,” said CAJ president Brent Jolly. “Similar national organizations, like the News Leaders Association (NLA) in the U.S., have published diversity surveys in their countries for several decades. It is important for Canada to do the same.”
The results of the survey will be made publicly available following the response deadline, which is Friday, April 2, 2021. A full copy of the survey text is available here.
For more information about the CAJ’s diversity survey, please visit caj.ca/diversitysurvey.
