New report identifies key priorities to address training, trauma, industry well-being

“Taking Care” is the title of a groundbreaking research report in journalism, but it has also become something of a rallying cry within Canadian media for stronger action on mental health and trauma exposure within the news business.

Today, we are publishing a special follow-up report and formally launch a series of initiatives to help improve well-being in the journalism industry.

Does this interest you? Would you like to learn more or potentially get involved to help make a difference? Then read on!

From research to action

In May 2022, based on a national survey of more than 1,200 media workers, journalist Dave Seglins and I published the Taking Care Report on Mental Health and Trauma Among Canadian Media Workers. It documents alarming rates of anxiety, depression, stress and exposure to trauma on the job.

Then, in October, we convened the Taking Care Roundtable in Ottawa, a summit of Canada’s journalism leaders who joined together to collaborate on practical solutions to make our industry better, healthier and more sustainable.

“This window we’ve carved out for ourselves is a gift to ourselves and our industry,” Dave said in his opening remarks on that bright October morning. “Let’s see what we can come up with.”

Today, Dave and I are pleased to release the Taking Care Roundtable: What We Heard Report. It is a detailed account of the Roundtable discussions and industry recommendations for change. We commend the report authors, Carleton University research assistants Tariro Hlahla, Hafsatou Balde, Manuel Baechlin and Catriona Koenig, for their tireless efforts to document the Roundtable proceedings through words and pictures.

Several key themes emerged at the Roundtable, including the urgent need for the following:

• Talking about and acknowledging mental health in the newsroom

• Understanding duty of care

• Developing newsroom protocols

• Combating online hate and harassment

• Protecting freelance and precarious workers

• Taking care of vulnerable sources

Get involved to improve Canada’s news industry

There is a pressing need to collaborate — not compete. We know competition and being first is a bedrock of the news business. But on the issue of journalist well-being, news organizations at the Roundtable expressed that working together to share existing ‘best practices’ and to develop new mental health strategies will serve everyone’s interests.

Resources, training materials, and other successful initiatives should be shared and scaled up so as many journalists and media workers as possible can benefit. We urge journalism schools to adopt a similar approach.

So, here’s where you come in. We are looking for a diversity of leaders, voices and experiences from the Canadian news industry – from across the country, and from all jobs and backgrounds – to join newly-created working groups focused on the following key issues identified at the Roundtable:

• Newsroom practices and trauma protocols

• Inclusion and well-being

• Peer support

• Freelance, temporary and precarious work

• J-school curriculum

These hands-on working groups will forge ahead to devise and implement solutions so desperately needed in our industry.

Interested? Want to get involved – or just hear more? Please let us know by filling out this form – CLICK HERE.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Matthew Pearson is a member of the Canadian Journalism Forum and an assistant professor at the School of Journalism and Communication at Carleton University in Ottawa.