Inside The Narwhal

The good news in the bad news

Here are some not-so-fun facts to pull out for your next dinner party: for many in Canada, trust in news keeps waning. However, our readers buck the trend, allowing us to deliver impactful coverage

By Arik Ligeti

June 18, 2024 2 min. read

This article is more than 6 months old

You hear the cry constantly: journalism is in crisis.

But when something gets repeated so much, it starts to lose its meaning. So why don’t we give you some facts to keep in your back pocket for a dinner party?

Just 37 per cent of Canadians have trust in news. That’s down from 58 per cent in 2018.

Four in 10 feel worn out by the amount of news.

Half the country isn’t willing to pay anything for online news.

Pretty bleak, huh? And that’s before I mention that of the 15 per cent of people in Canada who pay for online news, most contribute to just a single publication — with 43 per cent subscribing to foreign outlets like the New York Times and only 10 per cent contributing to a local news source.

As I pored over the massive 2024 Reuters Institute Digital News Report this week, I found one piece of hope: 37 per cent of people in Canada who don’t pay for online news are willing to give something each month.

Another reason I have hope? In the 10 days since we launched The Narwhal’s June membership drive, 250 readers have stepped up to become monthly or annual members. That’s 250 of you who might have made a regular contribution to a Canadian news organization for the very first time.

If you’ve been meaning to contribute to The Narwhal, please sign up today — it only takes two minutes, and we’re just 50 members away from reaching our June membership goal.

At a time when trust in news is at an all-time low, you haven’t lost your trust in us. In fact, trust in The Narwhal’s journalism has grown every year, as more people read and support our independent reporting on the most pressing environment and climate issues of our time.

But the reality is only a tiny fraction of people who read The Narwhal’s stories make the leap with a tax-deductible donation to support our non-profit journalism.

Here at The Narwhal, we don’t run any ads and we don’t put up a paywall. We believe our public-interest journalism should be free for all to read, regardless of whether you have the financial means.

That commitment relies on our trust in readers like you: that enough of you who do have the means, will find value in our work and give whatever they can afford — say, the cost of a cup of coffee a month.

We still need to add 50 new members this month to make our budget work. If you believe in the power of independent journalism, will you help us buck the trend and not only survive, but thrive, for years to come?

Another year of keeping a close watch

Here at The Narwhal, we don’t use profit, awards or pageviews to measure success. The thing that matters most is real-world impact — evidence that our reporting influenced citizens to hold power to account and pushed policymakers to do better.

And in 2024, our stories were raised in parliaments across the country and cited by citizens in their petitions and letters to politicians.

In Alberta, our reporting revealed Premier Danielle Smith made false statements about the controversial renewables pause. In Manitoba, we proved that officials failed to formally inspect a leaky pipeline for years. And our investigations on a leaked recording of TC Energy executives were called “the most important Canadian political story of the year.”

We’d like to thank you for paying attention. And if you’re able to donate anything at all to help us keep doing this work in 2025 — which will bring a whole lot we can’t predict — thank you so very much.

Will you help us hold the powerful accountable in the year to come by giving what you can today?

Yes, I’ll support independent journalism

Another year of keeping a close watch

I’ll support independent journalism

Published By

Arik Ligeti

Arik Ligeti is The Narwhal’s director of audience, with a focus on growing a dedicated community of members and readers. Arik previously worked at The...

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