Good morning, Mr. Chong, Mr. Bélanger, Mr. Godin, and members of the Standing Committee on Official Languages.
On behalf of the Quebec Community Newspapers Association, my response to evaluating the road map initiative is to talk about community media. Before I offer a picture of the world of English community newspapers and the challenges they face offering news in this minority language in Quebec, let me explain our relationship with advertising.
What does this word mean, exactly? For readers of community newspapers, advertising is information. Indeed, many readers may not differentiate between what is a paid ad, an opinion piece, or a news article. They simply read every thing, every word, with great interest. The key here is that before we look at increasing or decreasing advertising rates, we need to understand that we're talking about increasing and decreasing information to residents.
This is particularly critical for the English minority in Quebec. Our small newspapers are sometimes the only way residents are informed about what's happening that impacts them, from various agencies, from the province, or even from the municipalities. Advertising bookings from federal agencies dropped from 2008 to 2011 in the range that the APF has experienced. But we can't look at 2009 for these drops, except that there was an interesting lesson that year. Federal agencies were highly proactive in their fight against the H1N1 virus. They used community newspapers to run a preventive information campaign, with success rates any top agency would admire. Rates of infection for H1N1 were controlled in large part due to this aggressive advertising campaign. Readers responded by following advice contained in the ads. Readers were scared, they felt isolated, and they heard horror stories from abroad and from television headlines, but they didn't understand what was being published in the French newspapers. The spending that went into community newspapers targeted them and helped them through this, offering them very reliable information. It empowered them to act responsibly and to help themselves. However, advertising bookings from federal agencies dropped off to virtually nothing following that pandemic. Road map or not, the effect was chilling.
The situation where the federal governing bodies do not communicate with residents is shared across Canada; it's not just in Quebec. For a minority language group, this information is critical. It's information about what agencies are doing for them or about them.
Community newspaper readership rates across the country are extraordinarily high. Whoever said newspapers are dead has neglected the weekly newspaper bracket. We're doing better than ever. Circulation is up, readership is up, and profits are up. Recent polls show that 74% of adult Canadians read their local community newspaper. The numbers are even higher for those newspapers in minority language situations.
A Léger Marketing study commissioned last year by some member cities of the Union des municipalités du Québec showed rates of readership reaching 89%—that's the number for the Aylmer Bulletin in the Aylmer sector of Gatineau. Newspapers Canada, the Canadian association of newspapers of which the Quebec Community Newspapers Association is a member, is running an information campaign right now asking federal agencies the following question. If three out of four Canadians read their local community newspaper, why doesn't the Government of Canada advertise with us? Why are you not informing minority language groups?
The campaign goes on to explain that this readership market is growing and enjoys a dedicated readership of over one million people in every corner of the country. Canadian numbers indicate that federal government spending in newspapers is under 10% of its total advertising budget. These numbers do not add up to responsible governments. Does this trend follow the road map guidelines?
Maybe the Internet is better than newspapers. The Internet is widespread, of course, and most newspapers have online versions, but the proof has not been established that turning to online advertising fulfills the responsibility the agencies have of informing Canadians about critical information. This responsibility has been outlined in the road map.
There's currently an online advertising campaign that celebrates veterans. On the ground yesterday I polled everyone I met in the busy shopping centre where our offices are located. Nobody I spoke with knows about this campaign. At the same time that I was out there asking people if they had seen it, we fielded 23 telephone calls or e-mails regarding information that was in our paper that day, information that did not include anything about veterans or that campaign. But my anecdote might not be convincing enough.
Editor and Publisher, a media industry magazine, published results of a readership study relating to advertising in their July 2011 edition. The study evaluated advertising media options--readers', viewers', listeners' various responses to advertising messages. Again, these are information messages coming from agencies. Thirty-six percent of adults preferred newspapers and responded to the information they received through their community newspaper. The study included questions about the Internet, television, radio, direct-to-user platforms, and social media. I have copies of these results if anyone's interested.
The Quebec Community Newspapers Association urges federal agencies to increase communications with residents, particularly in areas of Quebec where the English don't understand what's in the majority-language newspaper or on television. It needs to happen in such a way that residents can assimilate the information most effectively, and that's community newspapers. The English-speaking minority in Quebec has supported its weekly newspapers because these people read their papers every week. They read every aspect of it, and they respond--letters to the editors, submitted photos, tips. They continually use the newspaper. Local businesses advertise. And this shows how important it is. Anyone with a message to share uses the paper, and why would anyone with a message not use the community newspaper? Can federal government agencies put themselves in the group that does not follow best practices?
The road map initiative, with its flow charts and best practices guides, seems to require federal agencies to use community newspapers to dialogue with residents, based on performance results of these newspapers. The Quebec Community Newspapers Association and the Canadian Community Newspapers Association have documented the performance of the newspapers.
Use what people use. In Quebec, minorities use English newspapers.
Thank you.