Shock for Shock

Barely on the stands a day, Shock magazine may be recalled and pulped, if a photographer has his way. According to a story in Ad Age, the inaugural cover features a photograph of a G.I. holding a wounded child. The publication of the picture was never authorized, says photographer Michael Yon, a former Green Beret who went to Iraq as a freelance journalist. Shock's publishers, Hachette

Walrus subs up, singles flat

Latest circulation results for The Walrus indicates that it continues to grow, having increased average qualified circulation by about 8.8% since this time last year.The average qualified paid circulation published by CCAB/BPA for the 6 months ended March 2006 is 46,581. Last year, it was 42,828. (The qualified paid circulation includes about 3,300 copies that are distributed in Air Canada's

U of T mag goes forest-friendly

U of T Magazine has become the 7th glossy Canadian title to switch to ancient forest-friendly paper (100% post-consumer recycled stock), effective with its summer 2006 issue. The others are explore (with the distinction of being the first to make the switch), Outpost, Yes, Know, Outdoor

Them Days founding editor passes away

Canadian Press reports that Doris Saunders, the founding editor of Them Days magazine and widely recognized for her work to preserve the history of Labrador, has died in St. John's at the age of 64.The magazine and its archival annex have become a Labrador institution and are often described as among the best collections of material about Labrador. Saunders was inducted into the Order of Canada

Tribute to the trenches

It happens less often than it ought to: an editor of a major magazine paying tribute to one of his senior editors. In the June issue of Report on Business magazine, Editor Laas Turnbull devotes his Editor's Desk column (sorry, can't find a link) to celebrating the skill, insight and sensitivity that one of his senior editors, Ted Mumford, brings to his job. (And so he should, as he notes Mumford

The freelancer's -- and the industry's -- challenge

In the recently released Professional Writers Association of Canada (PWAC) study of the freelance writing sector in Canada, (available from pwac.ca) it was interesting to find out that full-time freelancers not only earn higher rates, but (not surprisingly) take home more money. (This has to be put in the context that, as reported in an earlier post, that freelancers generally have seen their

Harper's yanked from Indigo stores because of prophet cartoons

Ten per cent of Harper's magazine's total circulation comes from the Canadian market, so it's not a small deal when Indigo Books and Music pulls all the single copies from its 260 stores , as the Globe and Mail has reported happened this week. Normally the chain handles 3,000 copies a month. It's because of an article called "Drawing Blood" in the June issue.The issue has been in subscribers'

Water jitters noted in the desert playground

Maclean's is being noticed in some unexpected quarters. The Las Vegas Sun has taken notice of the recent Maclean's feature on Canada's fears that the U.S. is going to make a grab for Canadian water, as well as articles on the same topic in the magazine of the Council of Canadians and similar in The American Prospect. But officials in Nevada pooh-pooh it: "We've got no desire or direction to go up

The Beaver redesign pays off

Let it be a lesson to all of us: good covers count. A thorough-going and very handsome redesign of The Beaver magazine (published by Canada's National History Society) is reaping the fruits of that investment, at least measured by newsstand results. According to a newsletter included with its most recent issue, an earlier issue featuring the cover story about Canada's fabled silk train was the

MI3 Q&A

Senior Editor Jeff Goldsmith interviews MI3 co-writers Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci

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Quark7 launched; too little, too late?

Will this be a case of closing the barn door after the cow has escaped? In New York, Quark XPress has released Version 7 of the 25-year-old software package, trumpeting some 160 changes and improvements.But at the same time, according to a story in Folio:, its major rival, Adobe, released news of yet another convert to its InDesign Creative Suite. Health and wellness publisher Rodale (Prevention,

Sara Angel now Editor of Chatelaine

At last, a new Editor has been appointed at Chatelaine. The magazine has been without an editor for 9 months, since the resignation of Kim Pittaway.A brief announcement today by Publisher Kerry Mitchell said: "I am delighted to announce the appointment of Sara Angel to the position of Editor-in-Chief at Chatelaine. Sara's unique combination of talents includes writing, editing, designing and

Submission Period Closed

The submission period for LIT 12 is closed for the summer. Please check back in September when we will start reading submissions for LIT 13.

Fox postal report makes grim reading

Michael Fox, the acknowledged industry expert on Canadian postal matters, has released another of his periodic reports on Canada Post pricing. Fox is Senior Vice-President, Circulation and Development for Rogers Media. And this one is, like others, a shocker; in addition to providing a detailed analysis of the post office's rate card and increases, it reports the indifference (bordering on

If it bleeds, it leads as Shock debuts

All the dubious pleasures of ogling a traffic accident will be brought right to your newsstand or doorstep as a new magazine called Shock, a North American version of the French Choc, debuts in Canada and the U.S. next week. It's published by Hachette Filipacchi, the world's largest magazine publisher and distributor. Hachette publishes such upscale books as Elle (and partners with Transcon in

Saltscapes may go into restaurant business

The Gourlays, Linda and Jim, are among Canada's highest energy publishers with their magazine Saltscapes out of Halifax. They have been aggressively building the brand and, according to a story in today's Halifax Chronicle Herald, they may put their brand on restaurants in Super 8 motels in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.A decision to proceed with three locations in Nova Scotia and one in New

Cell phone use can skew research data

For those magazines which use telephone polling as a way of reaching or probing reader attitudes, a lonnnnggg study by Pew Research Centre in the U.S. found that the difficulty reaching cellphone-only households (about 7 t0 9%) so far makes relatively little difference (about 1%) to the ultimate results of random telephone surveys. However cellphone-only households tend to be younger, less

Short engagement

Oh, dear. It's not bad enough that web and online and podcasts and whatever else is threatening magazines as we know them (I'm kidding, really), now comes along some research that shows magazine "engagement" may be no great shakes, either.For years, publishers have been pushing the idea that "engagement" with readers is the key to success for advertisers, that "engagement" is something that is a

Quebecor and Transcon in TV listings squabble

Montreal-based Quebecor Inc. (a significant magazine player and the largest magazine printer) is accusing Transcontinental Inc. (the largest consumer magazine player and one of the largest printers) of breaking a non-competition agreement.According to an article inside and below the fold in the Globe and Mail, the accusation came out as part of pre-trial filings.Transcon is apparently printing a

She's an off roader on the cusp of being an experiential with indulger tendencies

Traditional Home magazine has published its latest psychographic breakdown of the all-consuming affluent American female population, beloved bedrock of women's service and shelter publishing, according to an online item published by Media Post. Traditional Home, is owned by the Meredith Corporation (Better Homes and Gardens), which partnered with trend-tracking firm Nickles and Ashcraft to study

Take your pick

Here's an article where a puzzled writer talks to three experts and finds three different views of the current state and future of the magazine business.“Consumer magazines are being hit on all sides,” says Thomas Kemp, managing director at the Veronis Suhler Stevenson media investment firm. “A strong flight of advertising to online” poses one problem, he says, while “newsstand sell-through has

Transcon's Smart Living to launch in September

According to Media in Canada, Transcontinental will debut Canadian Smart Living in September, a mag focusing on consumer electronics and lifestyle. It will be included as a reader premium in more than 200,000 subscriber and newsstand issues of other Transcon titles. Publisher Joe Tersigni says the new publication's target is typically married or living with a partner, in their 30s or 40s with

The freelancer's life and earnings

The Professional Writers of Canada (PWAC) have released a major study they did of the earnings of freelance writers in this country and the results are bracing: Real earnings for freelance writers in Canada shrank in the decade between 1995 and 2005. In 1995 respondents to the PWAC survey indicated that their average annual income before taxes was approximately $26,500. "A decade later, that

OCAD Publication Show rocks

Tonight attended the 1st annual Publication Show at the Ontario College of Art and Design in Toronto. Lamentably, this show only runs for 3 days, but if you're able, go and see it. Or make a note in your calendar for this time next year, as it is sure to be repeated after this stellar debut. There is some excellent, and I mean excellent, work from this year's Faculty of Design graduates,

Michael Fox named Volunteer of the Year

It's a great pleasure to see that Michael Fox has been named Magazines Canada Volunteer of the Year for 2005. It's a brand new award and he well deserves to be its first recipient. Fox is Senior Vice-President, Circulation & Development at Rogers Publishing Limited in Toronto and is actively involved in the publishing industry as Chair of Magazines Canada's Postal Subcommittee and a member of the

Dose proves fatal

It may have rounded the corner into its second year (see earlier item) but it almost immediately stumbled into oblivion. Dose, the "daily magazine" is no more. It was launched in April 2005 (right). CanWest MediaWorks is discontinuing the publication and rolling its website dose.ca into its crowded stable of online services. About 50 people will lose their jobs, although it's not clear if Noah

Botting takes early retirement from Rogers

Harvey Botting, the head of trade publishing for Rogers Media, is taking early retirement. Botting's decision to retire makes him only the latest of the senior vice-presidents to leave Rogers (earlier departures were Paul Jones and Donna Clark). Botting was one of the most senior magazine guys in the company, and one of the last links to the old Maclean Hunter management.President Brian Segal's

Glow gets a francophone sister

A sister publication to Glow, published by Rogers Media for Shoppers Drug Mart, has been launched. Pure magazine went on newsstands across Quebec yesterday, according to Media in Canada. It will be published by Rogers six times a year and distributed to 65,000 Optimum card bearers and on newsstands; content includes international beauty and fashion trends to health, lifestyle and cuisine ideas

A dollar-a-year man

The former President and owner of CB Media and publisher of Canadian Business, the Honourable Roy MacLaren, PC, has been appointed by Prime Minister Stephen Harper as a Commissioner of the Public Appointments Commission. MacLaren, a former MP, diplomat and businessman, was one of three commissioners appointed.“Establishing the Public Appointments Commission is an important step toward a more open

George Bain dies; wrote for Maclean's

George Bain, who for many years wrote for Maclean's magazine as well as anchoring the main political column for the Globe and Mail, has died in Halifax, aged 86. Bain, who recently lived in Mahone Bay, had become the first director of the journalism school at the University of King's College in Halifax in 1979 and became an officer of the Order of Canada in 2001. He authored five books and won

CMAJ Editor speaks out; says he was fired without cause

The New England Journal of Medicine has published a letter (which it solicited) from Dr. John Hoey, the former editor of the Canadian Medical Association Journal. Dr. Hoey says that, while the CMA refused to give a reason for firing him, his exploration of politically sensitive issues may have led to his dismissal. It was the first time he had spoken or written about the dispute. The CBC website

Rogers dumps Quark; goes with In Design

That giant sucking sound you heard was QuarkXpress going down the drain at Rogers Media. All publications are to switch over to Adobe In Design as soon as it can be managed. Quark launched QuarkXpress in 1987 and sparked off a revolution in destktop publishing. It rapidly eclipsed other software like Ventura Publisher and PageMaker, but in recent years the major complaint of users was failure to

United Church Observer wins CCP award

Winner in the magazine category of the Canadian Church Press 'Awards of Merit' given out this week was The United Church Observer, which was hailed for inspiring readers to "explore and apply their faith and spirituality."

Dose rounds the corner into Year Two

Congratulation to Dose, the "daily magazine" from CanWest MediaWorks, which this week celebrated its first year of publication. I admit my continuing scepticism about their business model, but there is no denying that, day in, day out, they have produced an interesting and entertaining publication; it is no more than it claims to be, and sometimes pleases and surprises its readers.

U.S. National Magazine Awards given out

The guiding principle in magazine awards is "you can't win it if you're not in it"; lots of entries usually result in some nominations, which in turn can result in a couple of wins. But not always, as evidenced by this weeks U.S. National Magazine Awards. The Atlantic Monthly, which had 8 nominations, went home with no awards.The "Ellies" (named after the elephant shaped "stabile" tropy designed

Dollco Printing wins award for family enterprise

A family owned company that prints many Canadian magazines has been given the 2006 CICA Family Enterprise of the Year Award by The Canadian Association of Family Enterprise (CAFE) and the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA). The award is made biannually."Dollco Printing is a true Canadian family business success story,' said Lawrence Barns, National CEO of CAFE, 'Having reached its

International magazine launches

According to the International Federation of the Periodical Press, Marquard Media AG, the Swiss publisher, has launched a Russian version of JOY. It is its latest of 10 international editions pf the pocket-format trend magazine is aimed at young, fashion-conscious women aged 18-34. The Russian edition starts with 320,000 copies.Other international launches of note, according to FIPP:Millionaire

OOPS! This Magazine reprints entire issue

The May-June issue of This Magazine was like a sudoku puzzle for subscribers, with pagination in one copy going 1-6, 15-22, 7-14, 31-46 and some forms/pages missing altogether, including an article on copyright on page 28. The magazine has recently posted a notice on its website apologizing for this, which was said to be an error at the printer. Subscribers are just now receiving a reprinted

Get a glimpse of the future at OCAD grad show

Many of Canada's best art directors and designers have graduated from the Ontario College of Art & Design in Toronto; many others have passed through in one way or another. The graduate students are holding a showcase on Wednesday, May 17 from 5 to 9 p.m. at 100 McCaul Street where you may get a glimpse at the future of magazine design in this country

Quote, unquote

"HERE is the most important thing you need to know about Star: It is not a magazine; it is a picture book that chronicles celebrity distress.... [it] shines in a lesser galaxy, where celebrity is just a hunka hunka of burning loss presented in bite-sized bits." -- Fern Siegel, contributing writer to Media Post, in her commentary (free sub requ'd) on Bonnie Fuller's Star.

Gzowski literacy award call

If you've written anything about literacy issues in a Canadian magazine, you might want to consider submitting it to the Gzowski awards. The Peter Gzowski Literacy Award of Merit was developed by ABC CANADA, in honour of broadcaster and writer Peter Gzowski, to recognize the talent,effort and commitment required to achieve quality reporting on issues related to literacy.The prize is glory and

Goodbye to frequency; hello to engagement?

Frequency of message has been, for many years, a foundation of selling magazine advertising. But, as Paul Parton points out in the May issue of Media (Media Post): "Frequency suggests that you can create successful communications by simply beating people over the head with the same idea."But, he goes on, that doesn't mean that the new buzzword 'engagement' is much of a substitute because "

Department of euphemism

Trafalgar Productions, which publishes a controlled-circ youth entertainment bimonthly Access, has struck a deal with The Forzani Group to start distribution in October of a 100,000-circ glossy called Replay to Forzani’s chain of 116 Sport Chek stores across the country. It was reported today in mastheadonline (sub requ'd).The magazine will feature Forzani merchandise and, according to a

Michael I is a good guy. Discuss

The Tyee is an online magazine published out of Vancouver and it frequently brings an fresh perspective on the issues of the day. That's the case with its article defending Michael Ignatieff, by Shefa Siegel. Even if you think the Kennedy School at Harvard is an intel organization for the American empire, you may enjoy this interesting personal view of the man who is undoubtedly setting the pace

New Chatelaine boss imminent?

The Toronto Star's prolific blogger Antonia Zerbisias has posted that an editor is about to be named for Chatelaine and that it is a Canadian. We were beginning to wonder if the Publisher Kerry Mitchell was trying to get in the Guiness Book of World Records for the most drawn-out executive search in history.

Canadian newsstand finalists announced

The fifth annual Canadian Newsstand Awards finalists have been announced. The release and the complete list of nominees can be found here and all nominated covers may be seen there, too. The winners are announced at a cocktail reception and presentation, Tuesday, June 6 at 5 p.m. during Magazines University at the Old Mill in Toronto. Nominated covers will also be displayed in a special exhibit

Who will pay for watchdog journalism?

[But] the most serious competitive threat to traditional journalism doesn't come from bloggers and their compatriots. It comes instead from businesses that are also using technology's power. They're winning advertising, the other kind of "content" that appears in print publications and broadcasts....What if we're in for a decade or two of decline in the watchdog journalism that takes deep pockets

Ottaw Sun writer accuses Adbusters magazine of anti-semitism

Perhaps it's not a surprise, given the source, but a writer in the Ottawa Sun on Monday accused Adbusters magazine of anti-Semitism. Jordan Michael Smith, in a column headed 'Anti-Semitism still lurks in left', lumps together Islamists and the far left as fellow travellers in such attitudes, while saying that such views won't get much traction in Canada. Smith is a graduate student in political

Atlantic Journalism Awards magazine winners

The gold award winner for magazine articles in the Atlantic Journalism Awards given out on Saturday evening in Halifax was Joanne MacPherson, for her article 'Home Sweet Home' in Saltscapes, Dartmouth. Finalists in this category were Amber Harkins, East Coast Living Magazine, Halifax, for 'Marine Life' and Joshua Samuel, Progress, Halifax, for 'The Birth Of A Company'.The best magazine cover

High end zines; a contradiction in terms?

There is a bull market these days in articles that start out: "The traditional magazine model is dead." Which is how a May 7 article in the New York Times (free sub requ'd), by Jessica Pressler, kicked off when talking about the growth of high-end "zines". Now, aside from the fact that the "zines" she was talking about are to true zines as today's "lofts" are to lofts, there were a lot of

Art School Confidential Q&A

Senior Editor Jeff Goldsmith interviews screenwriter and comic book artist Daniel Clowes about Art School Confidential

Not Currently Available

Geist fired by auditor

There must be more to this story: Geist magazine has been expelled by BPA Worldwide, the circulation audit firm, effective April 26. The text of the announcement:At a meeting of the BPA Worldwide Executive Committee held on April 6, 2006, the Committee voted to terminate the BPA Worldwide membership of The Geist Foundation,for violation of Section 10.1.3 of BPA Worldwide Bylaws in that it failed

Gordon Badger, a founder of Homemaker's dies

One of the founders of Homemaker's magazine, Gordon Badger, passed away April 30. His death notice in the Globe and Mail said the death, aged 70, was unexpected. He had apparently married just last month and had taken his new bride Marilyn Weir to rural Ireland for a honeymoon.Badger, a chartered accountant, had been one of the small group that launched Comac Communications Limited and, with

Quote, unquote

"We're not narrow, we're svelte."-- Peter Kaplan, editor of The New York Observer, commenting on announced reduction in width of the paper to save money."Salmon, sliced thinner"-- headline in the Media Mob column in the Observer (the paper is printed on salmon-pink newsprint)

The demise of the weak and the small

Rob Gregory, group publisher of Maxim, and Dana Fields, executive publisher of FHM were recently interviewed by Media Life about the current state of men's magazines, in light of the recent slump in advertising sales for the category. They were also asked about the demise of Cargo. Here's their response to two of the questions. You can read the rest here.Q: What is the next big trend in men's

Transcontinental makes deal with Meredith to publish "Canadian" edition of More magazine

The fox is in the barnyard, but apparently we are also inviting him into the henhouse. Transcontinental Media has so enjoyed its partnership with Elle magazine (publishing Elle Quebec and Elle Canada) that it has now announced that it will publish a Canadian editon of the popular U.S. women's magazine More, starting in spring 2007.The editor-in-chief will be Diane Rinehart, the former editor of

Warrior cops interview with Seymour Hersh

In what must be a coup for a small magazine published out of Montreal, the current issue of Warrior carries an interview by contributing editor and Democracy Now producer Aaron Mate with muckraking journalist Seymour Hersh.Mate writes: "In an era when journalists have become nothing but gatekeepers for long and beguiling echo chambers, that a man like Hersh is still scooping, still making his

Torstar says Scoop launch cost $1 million

Information released at the annual general meeting of Torstar Corporation indicate the Weekly Scoop launch last fall, cost $1 million and Torstar executives were quoted yesterday saying they expect the losses to be in excess of $3-million this year, because of slower than anticipated ad sales and the cost of promotions such as the last week's sale of the magazine with a cover price of 25 cents

Chair of CMAJ governance panel steps down for health reasons

In yet another loose strand of a story that has unravelled steadily over the past few months, the chair of the panel launched by the Canadian Medical Association to recommend a new governance structure for the Canadian Medical Association Journal has resigned, for health reasons. The panel was to have reported back to the association in June, but that now seems unlikely. Mr. Justice Antonio Lamer

U.S. Postal Service hikes mag rates by 11.4%

The U.S. Postal Service today filed a rate case for a system-wide increase of 8.5 per cent, with magazines looking at an average of 11.4%. Combined with the 5.4 per cent postal increase in January, says Folio: in a bulletin to its subscribers, U.S. magazines will have seen rates go up by 17.4% in a year and a half.

Kathryn Swan to sell for new Transcon "hybrid"

Kathryn Swan, who resigned as Publisher of Torstar's Weekly Scoop in February, has emerged again handling business development for a new publication being developed by Transcontinental Media. This is likely one of the new "hybrid" magadirectories that Transcon is to produce in cooperation with the Yellow Pages group. More on mastheadonline (sub'n requ'd)Meanwhile, Advertising Manager Tracy Day

Quote, unquote

"This is truly a disruptive era for traditional media businesses. And from all that I read, and from everyone I talk with, I don’t think anyone can safely predict which business models are going to take hold and which businesses are going to fade away. New technologies are empowering consumers to create and share their own content. People expect to be able to skip commercials on television and

Handicapping the US mag awards

Here's a fun way to pass the time. Joe Friedman, who writes the column Media Web in MarketWatch, has handicapped the (U.S.) National Magazine Awards, giving his picks and possible "dark horses" for some of the categories. Wish we'd thought of it. Anyone want to make their own list for the (Canadian) National Magazine Awards?

Michael Enright comes to the defence of Western Standard

In his opening essay recently on the Sunday Edition, CBC host Michael Enright came to the aid of the Western Standard in its struggle with the Alberta Human Rights Commission over the Standard's decision to publish the so-called "Danish cartoons". Enright notes that most mainstream media demurred from publishing the cartoons, an act which he compared to reporting an earthquake without showing

University Affairs article wins writer health research medal

Toronto freelance writer Michael Smith wrote a "scientific whodunit" for University Affairs magazine (published by the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada). And the story of the tragedy and perseverance that yielded powerful new drugs has won this year's sanofi pasteur Medal for Excellence in Health Research Journalism, presented by Canadians for Health Research (CHR).The award --

Government repudiates 2/3 of pledged support for Canada Council

The federal Conservative government has effectively repudiated two-thirds of a $150 million cash injection promised last fall to the The Canada Council for the Arts. The budget announced on Tuesday gives the Council a mere $20 million in 2006-2007 and $30 million in 2007-2008.And while Heritage Minister Bev Oda has said she'll work with the arts community to understand its needs, the flat fact

Laframboise named exec editor of LOULOU

Claude Laframboise, until now editorial director of Mariage Québec (and, before that, Montrealeditor of Fashion magazine), has been named executive editor of LOULOU's English and French editions."I am absolutely thrilled with this challenge," said Laframboise, "because I believe in shopping magazines, which reflect a new consumer reality. LOULOU's success, both with consumers and with advertisers

Now THAT'S recycling

Metro, the free daily newspaper that litters the Toronto and Montreal subway is apparently trying to do something about this problem, in New York. Uniformed attendants will 'recycle' up to 40,000 copies a week, cleaning them up and smoothing them, stamping them "Recycled" and handing them out to people over the lunch hour. We could not make this up.

John Macfarlane to receive National Magazine Award for Outstanding Achievement

The Foundation Award for Outstanding Achievement has been one of the outstanding achievements of the National Magazine Awards. It is an opportunity to highlight people who have made a real difference in this business and it has created an enviable and hard-to-join club. Entering that select group this year is John Macfarlane, the Editor of Toronto Life and Vice-President of Strategic Development

Walrus lumbers away with 49 Magawards nominations

The Walrus has been nominated an astounding 49 times* for this year's National Magazine Awards. The nominees represent over 300 articles in 75 different magazines, and were chosen from over 2,300 total entries. Other top nominees were Toronto Life (24 nominations) and the late Saturday Night (20 nominations). L’actualité got 18 nominations, Explore 14 and Toro 13. The full list of nominees can be

Quote, unquote

"A problem for many magazine publishers is that they serve several customer segments, forcing a dual focus, or sometimes a focus on more than two audiences. That’s the brutal reality of static media. To get higher circulation, magazines must go broad, even some of the more-narrowly focused enthusiast publications. Thus, any customer buying a single issue, or subscribing, gets something a lot less

Masthead reports draft guidelines for advertising

Like a good investigative reporter he is, Masthead editor Bill Shields has revealed some of the changes being proposed for industry advertising guidelines. The Canadian Society of Magazine Editors guidelines have been in the process of revision for some months by a broad industry working group. Read more about it here. [Fair disclosure: I sit on the task force and the final version hasn't been

With TQ, is Globe heavying up on contract publishing?

The church and state boundaries get fuzzier by the day. The most recent example was TQ magazine, published by the Globe and Mail and distributed last Wednesday. In fact, it is a handsome and interesting magazine (TQ stands for Technology Quarterly), with a lot of well-written and presented articles about technology (must make Backbone wonder, given that it is distributed by the Globe). But there

Storyteller magazine editor shortlisted for Arthur Ellis prize

Melanie Fogel, the editor of Storyteller magazine, has been shortlisted for Arthur Ellis Award, this country's top prize for excellence in crime writing.She was nominated for Best Short Story for her story "Plenty of Time" in When Boomers Go Bad (Rendezvous). The Arthur Ellis prize is named after Canada's last official hangman. Winners of the award will be announced by the Crime Writers of Canada

The three per cent club

The Time magazine 100 is on newsstands today and three Canadians made the list: Basketball MVP Steve Nash is a Hero and Icon; Stewart Butterfield of Vancouver who, with his American-born wife Caterina Fake, created the photo-sharing site Flickr, is a Builder and Titan Filmmaker Jeffrey Skoll is an Artist & Entertainer Apparently, there were no Canadians deemed worthy of being Scientists