Tuesday April 18, 2023 | VICTORIA, BC [Updated 1:20 pm]
Publishing insights by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
BC Book Day produced a packed Hall of Honour at the BC Legislature yesterday, with people and books filling the space to the rafters.
The BC Government says “help is on the way for local book and magazine publishers”, but so far has not accommodated these supports for local and regional newspapers and online news portals that arguably write history in the moment.
Lana Popham, Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport, replied to a media question yesterday saying that there may yet be considerable for the newspaper sector.
Since the onslaught of social media and ‘everyone a publisher’ (individuals, organizations and government all have Facebook pages or other means to post their ‘news’ or promotions for free), newspapers of all sizes have suffered crushing economic strife. As journalists continue to do the work of their calling, perhaps it is less obvious how the business model which supports their dutiful craft has been crumbling.
Generally speaking, newspapers and online news portals have relied on revenue from advertising and subscriptions. When pretty much all news is available ‘free’ online, that business model is almost irretrievably broken, leaving a shattered fate for journalists and the journalism profession in its wake.
This problem is not unique to BC, but BC’s government has proven itself to be insightful and creative in other areas, and perhaps they will find a way to support the production of news without being seen to be having any editorial influence.
Government leaders at the event:
Addressing the BC Book Day crowd were Minister of Minister of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport Lana Popham and Bob D’Eith, Parliamentary Secretary for Arts and Film.
Premier David Eby was there at the BC Book Day event to take it all in. Yesterday on Twitter, Premier Eby said: “I also want to thank all journalists for their important public service. Not only do you provide independent and local news, you hold leaders and politicians accountable. Thank you!”
Several government ministers mingled at the BC Book Day event including Health Minister Adrian Dix, Municipal Affairs Minister Anne Kang, and Children and Family Development Minister Mitzi Dean, Minister of Environment and Climate Change George Heyman, and Minister of State for Child Care Grace Lore.
$600,000 over three years:
To help B.C.’s book and magazine publishers address immediate challenges and give the broader publishing industry the support it needs to thrive in the future, the Province is providing $600,000 over the next three years:
- $200,000 to book publishers who are facing supply-chain challenges and rising costs related to printing, shipping and distribution.
- $400,000 to book and magazine publishers to help them remain innovative, adaptive and competitive.
Books and magazines:
“In honour of BC Book Day, we celebrate our domestic publishing industry,” said Minister Popham.
“B.C. has the second-largest English-language book publishing market in Canada. This industry is creative, innovative and diverse, and we are proud of the unique voices that are shared through the many B.C. publications. We are securing a stronger, more competitive future for these businesses, their workers and their products.”
The government says this funding builds on supports already provided to the industry through the BC Arts Council, Creative BC and the book publishing tax credit, to provide immediate relief and promote success.
“The publishing industry is facing significant challenges due to ongoing impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic,” it was stated yesterday.
“Books and magazines are an essential means of cultural expression,” said Bob D’Eith, Parliamentary Secretary for Arts and Film.
“Through publishers, authors share knowledge, experiences, stories and ideas. This supports community connections, education and literacy, and overall quality of life for people of all backgrounds. This government contribution will provide much-needed relief, now and for years to come,” said D’Eith.
Journalism is the base line:
What is not often realized is that the information, experiences, stories and ideas that are available to to author and publishers originate through the work of journalists, who are traditionally supported by newspapers/news portals.
It might not seem so interesting or complex to report on a local event, what a local politician says, or on the details of a happenstance in the community.
But all of this builds a public understanding of the community for its citizens. Without journalists, there is no baseline.
And of course, it goes higher and more complex than that, with the reporting on municipal, provincial and federal government directions and decisions.
Publishers:
“Publishers share the diverse and unique voices of the people living in British Columbia through hundreds of domestic publications. There are 46 award-winning publishers in B.C. and 250 magazine titles are produced each year,” says the Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport ministry.
“These publishers provide jobs, learning materials for classrooms and reading products for people in every neighbourhood.”
Again, that is made possible through the cultural understanding that starts with news coverage and attentive journalism.
Further supported by journalism is the library sector, which draws its power from collections produced by publishers of all types including newspapers, magazines and online news portals.
Book & magazine publishing in BC:
The Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture and Sport reports these statistics:
- B.C.’s book publishing industry accounts for 20% of English-language publishers in Canada.
- According to Creative BC’s Creative Industries Economic Results Assessment (CIERA) tool (2021):
Book and magazine publishing contributed $190 million in total GDP and more than 1,760 full-time jobs in B.C. in 2021. - Book publishing contributed $25 million in total GDP and 262 jobs.
- Magazine publishing contributed $165 million in total GDP and 1,499 jobs.
- There are more than 270 businesses that provide distribution, sales, education, safekeeping and public access to books and magazines.
===== External Links:
- Creative BC: www.creativebc.com
- Association of Book Publishers of BC: https://books.bc.ca/
- Magazine Association of BC: https://magsbc.com/
===== ABOUT THE WRITER & ISLAND SOCIAL TRENDS:
Mary P Brooke is the editor and publisher of Island Social Trends as published daily at islandsocialtrends.ca.
Ms Brooke has been covering politics, business, education and communities through a socioeconomic lens since 2008 on south Vancouver Island (previously as West Shore Voice News, and before that both Sooke Voice News and MapleLine Magazine).
Ms Brooke followed and wrote extensively about the COVID pandemic during 2020-2022, and continues to follow the topic as new developments arise. She has covered Sooke School District 62 (SD62) in depth since 2014. Mary P Brooke has covered BC government news and political issues since 2017, and now reports with the BC Legislative Press Gallery.
Among other qualifications, Ms Brooke holds a health sciences B.Sc., a university Certificate in Public Relations, and an industry certificate in digital marketing. In the 1990s she was a co-founder of the Professional Editors Association of Vancouver Island and wrote the curriculum for the Writing for Business and Journalism Program at the Western Academy of Photography in Victoria, BC.