Here’s a sneak peek at my yet-to-be announced publication 👀
I reveal the Toronto-based outlet’s first story and a teaser video.
Hey y’all! Anita here. Now that my yet-to-be announced publication has taken its first baby steps into the world, I figured I’d lift the curtain to give my subscribers a look before our official launch 👶🏻
The Green Line is a new local outlet that investigates the way we live to produce journalism that helps young Torontonians survive and thrive in a rapidly changing city.
We just started publishing on Instagram late Wednesday, with our very first story coming out on Thursday, but we’re already feeling the love and support. In just over 24 hours — without any promotion — roughly 100 people followed The Green Line’s Instagram account; according to data, most of those followers joined us after reading our debut story by News Innovation Fellow Kathryn Mannie.
In her multimedia piece, Kathryn explores why so many Torontonians with disabilities are having trouble getting vaccinated on their own — despite their increased risk of contracting COVID-19 — with some saying the municipal and provincial governments overlooked their needs. She interviews Andrea Boghina, a single mom who's physically disabled and immunocompromised; Donna Jodhan, president of Barrier Free Canada; Wendy Porch, chair of Toronto's Accessibility Task Force on COVID-19 Vaccines; and Aina-Nia Grant, director of community resources for Toronto's Social Development, Finance and Administration Division, who admits the city has fallen short when it comes to vaccine accessibility. Check out Kathryn’s story here.
Next week, among other upcoming articles, The Green Line will publish a companion piece by News Innovation Fellow Stephanie Bai who tracked the commute that Boghina would’ve had to take via transit if her friend hadn’t driven her from Scarborough to the vaccine clinic in Mississauga.
In addition to publishing Kathryn’s story on Instagram, we shared engagement posts that have already attracted suggestions for story ideas from our audience. We also shared six posts that describe our editorial approach.
Tell me: What do you think of The Green Line’s mission, the multimedia story formats we created and our design by RallyRally? Sound off in the comments, below, or shoot me an email.
Follow The Green Line
My team and I are having a blast building The Green Line! So, join us and tune in to our Instagram (short-form news), TikTok (comedy, op-eds, BTS), Twitter and Facebook to see how The Green Line develops.
Shout-outs
Thanks to David Akin, Global News’ chief political correspondent, for featuring this edition of The Other Wave in his newsletter.
In my community
Congrats to Ebony Reed and Louise Story, supportive and talented colleagues of mine who just announced that they’re co-writing The Black Dollar, a book about the history of race and money in America. In it, they’ll examine private and public actions that have affected the economic well-being of Black Americans.
Watch this video of “The Future of Entertainment: Creating Content that Resonates,” a Canadian Academy event I hosted in May featuring TikTok Canada’s Gave Lindo, Stories First’s Leena Minifie, Boat Rocker Media’s Michel Pratte and CBC’s Rignam Wangkhang, which recently came out.
Check out this experimental Nigerian documentary about misinformation and disinformation by Abiola Tayo-Afolabi, an award-winning screenwriter and adjunct faculty member at Pan Atlantic University in Lekki, Nigeria; it includes interviews with me and a cameo by my cat Michael (😺).
Cool stuff I like
For my fellow cinema buffs, I highly recommend reading my dear friend and film critic Brian Formo’s coverage of the 2021 Cannes Film Festival for Letterboxd; then listen to this podcast about his experience at the festival.
I was impressed by U.S. Olympian Simone Biles’ decision to prioritize her mental health over other people’s desires and expectations. Not only did Biles demonstrate radical courage, as this New Yorker essay argues, she’s also an example of how younger generations are challenging status quo ideas of success and what should be prioritized in life.
Congrats to my friend and kindred spirit Daniel Rotsztain, an artist whose pilot project plazaPOPS — a phenomenal community-led approach to creating pop-up gathering places in strip mall parking lots — was recently funded by the City of Toronto.
How you can support The Other Wave
My professional mission has always been to support the global movement towards more thoughtful, impactful news coverage, and all the ways that manifests. If The Other Wave gets you to think even a little differently about journalism, especially in Canada, then I will have accomplished what I set out to do. And if TOW gets you to take action and support Canadian media outlets — especially ones that strive to be innovative and inclusive — I will have exceeded my expectations.
If my values and goals resonate with you, please consider supporting fiercely independent media analysis that fills in gaps in coverage of the Canadian journalism landscape. How? Feel free to provide feedback, pass along resources, donate money or simply share this newsletter with your friends.