Listening to readers is Job 1

The elegant cursive writing on the envelope veiled an iron fist.

The handwritten note inside politely but pointedly took me to task for a grammatical mistake in a story I had written several days earlier.

I’ve forgotten the details of my misstep, though I hope I have not repeated it. But the broader message of that note has stayed with me: Toronto Star readers care about what they read and have high expectations for its journalists.

In this case, spying the mistake, this reader cared enough to write a note, address the envelope and put it in the mail.

In the three decades since that note arrived in the morning mail, I’ve heard from many more Star readers reacting to stories.

Sometimes it’s praise for highlighting an issue of concern. Some provide welcome insights on the news of the day. Sometimes it’s a desire to know more. Reporting on the pandemic, I heard from readers worried about their finances, fretting about jobs for their children, seeking more information about the public health guidance. Those concerns in turn shaped what I was asking of politicians and bureaucrats.

And, yes, there has been criticism, much of it constructive, but also comments I dare not reprint here.

The bottom line is that it matters. The feedback helps us fix our mistakes — the Star is committed to making corrections quickly and transparently. It highlights shortcomings in our reporting. It shapes our news coverage. It tells us what you consider important.

Now it’s time for a new round of conversations. I’m honoured to take on a new role as public editor at the Toronto Star, where such interactions with readers are at the very heart of the job.

The Star created the public editor post in 1972 as an office independent of the newsroom to listen to readers’ concerns and comments.

The platforms to deliver the news have changed and so, too, have the ways you reach us; emails have largely replaced phone calls and letters. (In 2019, the public editor’s office fielded just over 9,000 inquiries.)

But the Star’s commitment to accurate and fair journalism has not changed. Nor has the firm belief we are accountable for our journalism.

The commitment is underscored in the Torstar Journalism Standards Guide, which sets out the principles and policies for Star journalists. It notes that “good faith with the reader is the foundation of ethical and excellent journalism.”

“Every effort must be made to ensure that everything we publish is accurate, presented in context, and that all sides are presented fairly,” it states.

I assume the mantle from Kathy English, who did the job for 13 years, making her the Star’s longest serving public editor. Working with her for much of that time has been Maithily Panchalingam, the public editor associate. Together, we will be responding to you at a critical time for journalism.

Amid the blizzard of information, the need for trusted news has become even more critical. Each day, Star journalists and editors serve a vital role informing us about our local communities, our country and the world beyond.

That has been underscored in recent months, as they have written about the pandemic and its sweeping impacts on our health, finances, the very life of our cities.

And they have put a needed focus on its disproportionate impacts, on neighbourhoods and vulnerable sectors, such as seniors in long-termcare homes.

The desire for reliable information in this pandemic has driven trust in traditional media to an all-time high, according to a spring update to the 2020 Edelman Trust Barometer, a survey of 13,000 people around the globe. “Despite these high levels of trust in news sources, there is an urgent need for credible and unbiased journalism,” the paper said.

It’s a trust we can never take for granted. This space will address times when the Star has slipped up. It will also examine broader issues that confront the Star and other media outlets. Topping that list, I think, is the need for a concerted — and overdue — action to ensure that the journalists and editors who work in our newsrooms truly reflect the communities they write about.

What are your thoughts? What questions do you have about our journalism? What things would you like to see us do differently?

Send me a note at publiced@thestar.ca. I look forward to the conversations ahead.

Thanks for reading. Bruce Campion-Smith