Local News Organizations Receive $4.2 Million in CJC Funding to Expand Alberta Coverage

Twelve Alberta-based news organizations have received a combined $4.2 million in funding from the Canadian Journalism Collective (CJC) to expand local coverage in underserved communities across the province.

Filling the Gaps

The funding, announced Wednesday, supports a range of outlets including community newspapers, digital-first publications, Indigenous news services, and multilingual media organizations. The grants are intended to fund reporters covering municipal government, education, healthcare, and community issues in areas where local news coverage has declined.

“The CJC exists to ensure that Canadians have access to the trusted local journalism that democracy requires,” said CJC executive director Michelle Chicken-Chief. “These grants will put reporters on the ground in communities that have been left behind.”

Alberta Recipients

Recipients include outlets covering rural southern Alberta, Indigenous communities across Treaty 6, 7, and 8 territories, and multilingual publications serving Calgary’s diverse immigrant communities. Several digital-first news organizations received funding to hire their first full-time reporters.

CJC Requirements

Funded organizations must meet CJC standards for editorial independence, accountability reporting, and community engagement. Coverage areas must include at least two of the following: municipal government, education, healthcare, housing, Indigenous affairs, or environmental reporting.

“Local journalism is the oxygen of community life,” said University of British Columbia journalism professor Alfred Hermida. “Without it, corruption thrives, communities fragment, and citizens disengage.”

The CJC was established in 2023 as part of the federal government’s response to the crisis in local journalism. It distributes approximately $50 million annually to qualifying Canadian news organizations. Applications for the next funding cycle open in September.