In a slight departure from our regular Postmedia dunking, we talk about the nation's second-largest newspaper chain, TorStar. It may not surprise you to learn that they own the Toronto Star, which is relatively good compared with the National Post, but still part of the same corporate media ecosystem, with all the structural problems that entails.
TorStar was recently taken private and purchased by four fellas who are Conservative party donors. What does this mean for the future of Canada's last remaining progressive newspaper? Based on the two pieces we read this week, there's much reason for pessimism.
First up is Star Wheels section editor Norris McDonald. It turns out he thinks some wheels are better than others. Don't believe the lies of the powerful cyclist lobby. Cars are the superior mode of transit and Norris has the Google search results to prove it.
Then we discuss Star Entertainment columnist and Jordan Peterson friend Vinay Menon, who's very troubled that Natalie Portman believes police violence is bad. He uses a shallow "shut up and act" critique of celebrity culture as a launching pad to argue that we need to give the cops more money.
Links
The Star's Atkinson Principles
https://www.thestar.com/about/atkinson.html#:~:text=The%20editorial%20principles%20Atkinson%20espoused,%2C%20political%2C%20legal%20or%20racial.
Patrick White - 'I want people to know she's more than a hashtag': Family remembers Regis Korchinski-Paquet
https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-i-want-people-to-know-shes-more-than-a-hashtag-family-remembers/
James McLeod - Double-double tracking: How Tim Hortons knows where you sleep, work and vacation
https://business.financialpost.com/technology/tim-hortons-app-tracking-customers-intimate-data
Jeremy - COVID-19 and the forward march of surveillance capitalism
https://canadiandimension.com/articles/view/covid-19-and-the-forward-march-of-surveillance-capitalism
John Naughton - 'The goal is to automate us': welcome to the age of surveillance capitalism
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/jan/20/shoshana-zuboff-age-of-surveillance-capitalism-google-facebook
Follow Big Shiny Takes on Twitter or Instagram!
@bigshinytakes