Two new Visiting Journalists join Journalism at The Creative School
Two working journalists are bringing their expertise to students and faculty as they join the School of Journalism as ‘visiting journalists.'
Rhiannon Johnson, a reporter for CBC’s Indigenous Unit reporter and Unreserved producer, and Anita Li, the CEO and founder of The Greenline are joining two returning visiting journalists: Karyn Pugliese; and, Craig Silverman, the School’s Verification Expert in Residence.
Johnson (external link) , MJ ’18, an Anishinaabe journalist from Hiawatha First Nation, is currently working as a producer for CBC’s Indigenous show, Unreserved (external link) . Johnson is also teaching first-year students in the core courses this year JRN103 (Fall) and JRN105 (Winter).
The chair of the School of Journalism, Ravindra Mohabeer, says Johnson’s role will help create opportunities for Indigenous and non-Indigenous students, and consult with faculty on Indigenous issues. “She will bring a lot of that invaluable experience to her work here,” said Mohabeer.
Johnson said she plans on doing research, focusing on the burnout Indigenous journalists may experience covering their own communities. Even when doing “good” stories, reporting on Indigenous issues for mainstream news outlets is emotionally taxing, Johnson said, adding that is also her personal experience.
“There has been a pretty noticeable exodus of major Indigenous journalists from mainstream news outlets over the years,” she said. “Lots of them have said it’s tiring and it’s tiring still trying to get the old vanguard to pay attention to Indigenous stories and do them justice.”
Johnson started her journalism career covering arts, and urges those with a love for arts and culture to persevere. “No matter what, there’s always going to be art. There’s always going to be culture. If that’s what you want to do, then you should just go for it,” said Johnson.
Li (external link) will serve as Journalism Innovator-in-Residence. Li is a longtime journalist, news entrepreneur, media consultant, and educator. Currently, she is the founder, CEO, and editor-in-chief of The Green Line (external link) , a hyperlocal Toronto-based news outlet.
Li comes to the School as an expert in community-driven journalism, audience engagement, journalism entrepreneurship, media business models, newsroom diversity, media ethics, and journalism innovation.
She plans to mentor students and offer workshops such as a series for students interested in entrepreneurial forms of journalism and another, on audience engagement.
“If you're concerned about certain communities that are overburdened by stereotypes, you should definitely join the workshops because it'll give you the skills to be sure that you are more inclusive in your journalism,” said Li.
Li hopes to show journalism students that if they don’t feel like the traditional journalism pathway is for them, they can make a new one.
“A lot of legacy publications have been struggling for a long time, even before The Online News Act (also known as Bill C-18). They have had business models that have ceased to work really effectively because they largely relied on advertising dollars,” said Li. She contrasts this with the emerging media landscape she plans to introduce to students.
“In a system like mine, where people are much more experimental with journalism formats and the way they run the business, and they're more about serving many different communities–there's a lot more optimism.”
Li is kicking off her residency on September 25 with an event on campus where she'll chat with students and provide information on her innovation workshop series. The event will take place in RCC223 and will begin at 2 p.m. on Monday. Students can email jmika@torontomu.ca to view the event online.