After 60 years in business, Canada’s flagship national Jewish newspaper, the Canadian Jewish News, is closing, and will cease both its print and online editions.
In an official statement published on its website on April 6, CJN announced that its April 9 issue would be its last.
“Unfortunately, we too have become a victim of COVID-19,” president Elizabeth Wolfe said in the statement. “Already struggling, we are not able to sustain the enterprise in an environment of almost complete economic shutdown.”
“We have not been immune to the decline of the industry, although our decline has been slower than most,” Wolfe said. “Our bottom line showed small profits early on, to start to rebuild our lost reserves, became barely break-even shortly thereafter, and then recently succumbed to increasing losses. The economic devastation striking our community has also affected The CJN. The CJN suffered from a pre-existing condition and has been felled by COVID-19.
The weekly newspaper survived a near-death experience in 2013, when it came to the brink of financial collapse and was revived after a groundswell of community support. “I was not willing to give up without another try [in 2013],” Wolfe said. “With the support of the board of directors, we re-organized, restructured and created a new version of the paper and website to serve the Canadian Jewish community. Against all odds, our friends, advertisers and readers recognized how important it was to maintain The CJN as a platform to inform and engage Canadian Jewry.”
“I have no doubt that there will be another outcry from the community, particularly from those readers who rely on the print edition as their source of information, and perhaps, their connection to the Canadian Jewish community,” Wolfe said. “It is my hope that members of our community will recognize the need for a national platform and that a new CJN will emerge.”
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