"The bleeding is going to continue": Canadian journalist reflects on layoff, current state of media

It’s been a tumultuous time for the Canadian media industry, and one newsroom leader is sharing his thoughts and insight after recently being laid off from Global News.

Simon Ostler formerly worked as a newsroom producer at Global News in Toronto. In a heartfelt post on LinkedIn, he recently shared that his position had been eliminated.

“Do you ever get a feeling something significant is about to happen to you?” he wrote.

“I did on the morning of February 7th. That day, I was called into an office and told that my position at Global News was being eliminated.”

After 18 years of working in the industry, Ostler explained that being laid off was an “out of body experience” and also emphasized how the work of journalists and those in the media industry is “more crucial than ever.”

“The news media industry is under immense pressure, with layoffs becoming a weekly occurrence.”

Ostler got his start in journalism as an intern at Global News in Alberta in 2006 and moved up the ranks at the station.

He then moved to Toronto, worked at CP24 and CTV, and then landed back at Global, where he went through several leadership roles, eventually landing a position as the executive producer for the station’s morning and evening shows.

Looking back on his time in the industry, Ostler acknowledged there were many times when he and his colleagues were nervous about the current and future state of journalism in Canada.

He says now it’s “definitely something that’s top of mind for a lot of people in the newsroom and just what’s happened in 2024 has exaggerated that.”

There have been several significant layoff announcements at Canada’s major news networks over the past year.

Last spring, journalists with Global News found out they were out of a job in a round of layoffs by its parent company, Corus.

In December 2023, CBC/Radio Canada announced it would cut 600 jobs nationwide.

Most recently, Bell Media announced its plan to lay off nearly 5,000 workers and slash several news programs, including the CTV noon and weekend news shows in Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver.

Coming from the GTA — one of the most journalistically covered jurisdictions in Canada — Ostler says it’s been discouraging to see local news on the decline, leading to fewer people being informed about what is happening in their communities.

“I don’t live right in Toronto. I live north of the city and … talking to my neighbours, they don’t really know what’s going on and there’s not the same level of coverage even outside of the city,” he said. “So I’m concerned. I’m concerned about the future of media.”

Ostler also noted that Bill C-18 (the Online News Act) — which has led Google and Meta to block Canadian news from its platforms — has a devastating impact on how outlets can distribute information to audiences.

“It just hasn’t been the same… and I hope this is temporary because it’s been six months of a news blackout in Canada. This needs to be resolved one way or another,” he stated.

“There are so many hardworking journalists doing their thing and holding governments to account … and where and how do they reach people who aren’t going to traditional platforms anymore?” he said.

Still, Ostler has hope for the industry but says that things must be done differently.

“I don’t see the way it’s currently going getting any better. The bleeding is going to continue but with that comes a lot of smart people who are ready to take on the challenge.”

He also hopes to continue to encourage young journalists that they are needed to create a strong future for Canada’s media.

“What I always say to journalism students is we need you and your ideas. We need your innovation, we need your disruption in order to have a sustainable future.”