The latest paper edition of the six dailies that are members of the Coops de l'information was delivered across Quebec on Saturday morning. This moment marks the end of an era for regional news, but also the loss of many jobs.
Le Droit (Gatineau/Ottawa), Le Nouvelliste (Trois-Rivières), Le Quotidien (Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean), Le Soleil (Québec), La Tribune (Sherbrooke) and La Voix de l'Est (Granby). do it now bet on the web and mobile applications to reach their readership.
Since March 2020, the six regional newspapers have limited their printed publication to Saturdays. The pandemic and loss of advertising revenue led to her decision to devote herself entirely to digital.
There is a little nostalgia, recognized Valérie Gaudreau, editor-in-chief of Le Soleil, on Friday in the program Tout un matin.
She and the members of her team would rather look to the future than mourn the disappearance of the paper edition of their newspaper, which has been established in Quebec City for 127 years.
It's the end of a page, but not the end of the information […] Ultimately, it's about securing our future. Information, Le Soleil still exists.
But for many, like street vendors and delivery men, the end of paper publishing means losing their jobs. Some were with heavy hearts Saturday morning after a final night of work.
This is the case of Stéphane Côté, who has been a paperboy for Le Soleil for around twenty years. Before him, his grandfather had worked as a newspaper delivery driver and printer.
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For 23 years, Stéphane Côté delivered the latest edition of the newspaper “Le Soleil” in Camelot.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Magalie Masson
It was the end of an era, he said in an interview with Radio-Canada. I have several clients who have sent me Christmas cards to thank me; Several customers would have liked a continuation. But we take life as it is and will do something different.
His colleague Lyne Lacombe, who has been working as a delivery person for 28 years, also had a pang in the heart on Saturday. It's been our work for several years, so that's something. But it's over, we have no choice.
A question of survival
The end of the paper edition of daily newspapers that are members of the information cooperatives is a consequence of the increasing budget cuts in the media sector. This decision had become almost inevitable in order to ensure the financial survival of these regional newspapers.
The economic model no longer applies to a non-profit cooperative like us. We are very proud to have held the fort with this medium for as long as possible.
Like the Le Soleil team in Quebec, the La Tribune team decided to mark the end of the paper edition with an extensive special edition tracing the newspaper's history in the town of Sherbrooke, where it has covered the news for 114 years.
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Serge Denis and the La Tribune team produced the latest paper edition of the Sherbrooke daily.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Arianne Béland
Serge Denis, desk manager for the paper edition, worked on the development of this special edition on his last day at work. After a 32-year career, he, like his newspaper, is ready for a new beginning.
There are no worries, just a little sadness. For example, when records disappeared. Let's see if the paper comes back like the vinyl.
In 2019, Le Droit, Le Nouvelliste, Le Quotidien, Le Soleil, La Tribune and La Voix de l'Est underwent a major restructuring and were combined into an entirely new entity, the National Cooperative for Independent Information (CN2i).
The six daily newspapers were then threatened with closure after their owner, Groupe Capitale Médias, placed themselves under the protection of the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Code. The rescue plan made it possible to maintain the six newspapers by converting them into cooperatives.
With information from Magalie Masson, Ariane Béland and Philippe L'Heureux