#CAJ23

The CAJ celebrated its 45th anniversary at the beautiful Sheraton Vancouver Wall Centre, from April 14-16, 2023. The conference committee worked hard to bring together an exceptional line-up of keynotes and speakers, with workshops that furthered skills and panels that stimulated and energized your career.

Below you will find all the schedule information from the conference, including session names and speakers.

Need a printable PDF version of the schedule? We have you covered!

7:00 am

Registration Open
Pavilion Foyer

8:00 am

Welcome/Housekeeping
Plenary: Dispatches from journalism’s front lines
Diana Swain, Kim Bolan, Penny Daflos, Ian Young, Jen St. Denis, Ben Nelms, Duncan McCue, Dawna Friesen (moderator)
Room: Pavilion C/D

10:00 am

Coffee Break
Pavilion Foyer

10:15 am

In the aftermath: Reporting on climate disasters and rebuilding
Tyler Olsen, Glenda Luymes, Michelle Gamage, Laura Lynch, Mike De Souza (moderator)
Room: Pavilion D

Money, please: Building philanthropic models for journalism
Chris Lee (via Zoom), Jeanette Ageson, Zane Schwartz, Stephen Huddart, Andrea Houston (moderator)
Room: Pavilion A

Story blueprints: The five foundational structures
Jacqui Banaszynski
Room: Pavilion B

It’s a visual world and you’re just writing in it: Deeper reporting with the full power of photojournalism
Amber Bracken, Kayla Isomura, Jackie Dives, Carol Linnitt (moderator)
Room: Orca

Mentorship & Help Desk
Room: Finback

11:20 am

It’s always been personal: Reporting on substance use and the toxic drug crises
Maria Rantanen, Garth Mullins, Lori Culbert, Rumneek Johal, Jackie Dives, Moira Wyton (moderator)
Room: Pavilion D

Making the leap from reporter to editor
Steve Lus, Douglas Quan, Diana Swain (moderator)
Room: Pavilion A

Story idea generation: Finding and focusing fresh stories
Jacqui Banaszynski
Room: Pavilion B

Freelancing for now
Jimmy Thomson, Dylan Robertson, Francesca Fionda, Sarah Berman (moderator)
Room: Orca

Access Denied
Chief Dalton Silver, Jody Woods, Morgan Chapman, Robyn Laba
Room: Finback

12:15 pm

Break – Setup for Mindset Luncheon
no sessions in any rooms

12:30 pm

Mindset Awards Luncheon
Canadian Journalism Forum
Ticketed Lunch – Room: Pavilion C/D

2:00 pm

The Taking Care Project – The state of mental health in Canada’s news industry
Matthew Pearson, Dave Seglins
Room: Pavilion D

What J-school didn’t teach you: Surviving and thriving in a changing industry
Ainslie Cruickshank, Kayla Isomura, Michelle Cyca, Kathryn Gretsinger (moderator)
Room: Pavilion A

Picking up the pieces: Health-care reporting in the wake of COVID
André Picard, Penny Daflos, Brishti Basu, Justin McElroy (moderator)
Room: Pavilion B

Levelling the playing field: Pivoting towards paid student internships
Terra Tailleur, Shalu Metha, Harold Munro, Janice Tibbetts (moderator)
Room: Orca

Mentorship & Help Desk
Room: Finback

3:05 pm

How they did it: Behind the scenes of five groundbreaking investigations
Emma McIntosh, Rehmattulah Sheikh, Brett Forester, Morgan Bocknek, Brittany Guyot, Karyn Pugliese (moderator)
Room: Pavilion D

Five strategies to improve mental health in journalism
Matthew Pearson, Dave Seglins
Room: Pavilion A

Reporting in Indigenous communities: Focus on residential schools and treaties
Angel Moore, Kerry Benjoe, Duncan McCue (moderator)
Room: Pavilion B

Turning your story into a book
Julian Sher
Room: Orca

Freelancer finances
Michelle Cyca, Christina Frangou, Jesse Winter, Frances Bula (moderator)
Room: Finback

4:10 pm

Lightning talk: Tips and techniques to make your journalism better
Kim Bolan, Sean Holman, Harvey Cashore, Frances Bula, Jim Bronskill, Cecil Rosner (moderator)
Room: Pavilion D

Student Press Freedom Act
Spencer Izen, Jessica Kim (via Zoom)
Room: Pavilion A

Reporting in Indigenous communities: Focus on residential schools and treaties (continued)
Angel Moore, Kerry Benjoe, Duncan McCue (moderator)
Room: Pavilion B

Risks and responses on journalism’s digital frontline
Ahmed al-Rawi, Kiran Nazish, Jody Vance, Chris Tenove (moderator)
Room: Orca

Mentorship & Help Desk
Room: Finback

5:25 pm

Better together: The case for solidarity in journalism
Keynote: Amber Bracken
Room: Pavilion D

6:30 pm

Evening Social Event
6:30pm reservation made at Donnellan’s Irish Pub
Location: 1082 Granville Street

7:30 am

Registration Open
Pavilion Foyer

8:45 am

Science that glitters…might actually be a hot mess…and how to tell the difference
Sarah Everts
Room: Pavilion D

10 things you should know about covering immigrant communities
Paul Bucci, Brishti Basu, Alec Regino
Room: Pavilion A

Finding stories in your own backyard
Tim Smith
Room: Pavilion B

Where is data journalism heading?
Nathan Griffiths, Tom Cardoso, Francesca Fionda, Tara Carman, David McKie (moderator)
Room: Orca

Mentorship & Help Desk
Room: Finback

9:45 am

Coffee Break
Pavilion Foyer

10:00 am

Alone/Together: Navigating online risks
Trish Audette-Longo
Room: Pavilion D

Climate reporting in the age of wildfires, floods and extreme heat
Bob McDonald, Johanna Wagstaffe, Rochelle Baker, Mike De Souza, Sean Holman (moderator)
Room: Pavilion A

Putting personality in the news: How to report and write profiles
Jacqui Banaszynski
Room: Pavilion B

Deep dive: Unraveling the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy
Tom Cardoso, Nathan Griffiths
Room: Orca

Mentorship & Help Desk
Room: Finback

11:05 am

Combatting toxic workplace cultures
Randy Kitt, Annick Forest
Room: Pavilion D

‘But what’s the right thing to do?’ – Updating CAJ’s Ethics Guidelines
Pat Perkel, Anita Li (via Zoom), Karen Unland (moderator)
Room: Pavilion A

Navigating Canada’s military, from the inside and out
David Pugliese, Rachel Ward, Angel Kibble, Diana Swain (moderator)
Room: Pavilion B

Data journalism 101: Reporting with data
Nathan Griffiths, Francesca Fionda, Tara Carman
Room: Orca

Towards #86
Academic Rendezvous facilitated by Nana aba Duncan, Allan Thompson
Room: Finback

12:00 pm

Lunch Break
no sessions in any rooms

1:00 pm

Keynote: Nardwuar
Room: Pavilion D

2:20 pm

Space to thrive: Exploring inclusive newsroom practices
Tinnie Chow, Bailey Martens, Ashley Wadhwani-Smith, Andrea Houston, Julie Sobowale, Zane Schwartz (moderator)
Room: Pavilion D

Mastering the investigative interview
Julian Sher
Room: Pavilion A

What’s in the water on the West Coast?: Vancouver media goes national
David Beers, Carol Linnitt, Eden Fineday, Jimmy Thomson (moderator)
Room: Pavilion B

Statistics Canada: Getting beyond the news releases
David McKie, Chad Skelton
Room: Orca

We get it. The FOI system is broken. So what are we going to do to fix it?
Brent Jolly, Dylan Robertson
Room: Finback

3:25 pm

Escaping the ‘white gaze’: Reporting that represents and serves local communities
Christopher Cheung, Jimmy Jeong, Brishti Basu, Simran Singh (moderator)
Room: Pavilion D

Mastering the investigative interview (cont.)
Julian Sher
Room: Pavilion A

The year in First Nations reporting: Greatest hits and misses
Kerry Benjoe, Angela Sterritt, Francine Compton, Karyn Pugliese (moderator)
Room: Pavilion B

Visualizing your data: Seeing is believing
Chad Skelton, Francesca Fionda
Room: Orca

Mentorship & Help Desk
Room: Finback

4:30 pm

Gala setup – no sessions in Pavilion rooms

Fighting harder to get data: Tips on filing data requests
Tom Cardoso, Tara Carman
Room: Orca

Mentorship & Help Desk
Room: Finback

6:00 pm

President’s reception
Pavilion Foyer

6:45 pm

CAJ Awards banquet and gala
MC: Erica Johnson
Room: Pavilion C/D

9:00 am

CAJ AGM
Room: Orca