Class action suit by freelancers against the Montreal Gazette is in wrap-up stages
A class action lawsuit launched by freelancers against the Montreal Gazette is in its final stages. The lawsuit, which began to take shape in 1997 and first went to court in 2008, alleged that the Gazette had been reproducing freelancers’ work electronically for years without consent or compensation. An organization called the Electronic Rights Defense Committee pursued […]
Champion of freelancers, Heather Robertson, dies at age 72
Canadian journalist Heather Robertson passed away this week at the age of 72. Robertson co-founded both the Writers’ Union of Canada and the Professional Writers Association of Canada. She was a best-selling and award-winning author who championed the rights of freelancers in the digital age. Robertson’s 1995 class-action lawsuit against the Globe and Mail claimed […]
The E-Book Show Down: Part Three
E-books are emerging as the latest battleground between writers and print publishers seeking to monetize online content. In this “reset” moment, writers need to be sure they set a fair precedent early on. Read Part One and Part Two of this three-part series. By Derek Finkle The Walrus In late October, The Walrus approached […]
The E-Book Show Down: Part Two
E-books are emerging as the latest battleground between writers and print publishers seeking to monetize online content. In this “reset” moment, writers need to be sure they set a fair precedent early on. Read Part One of this three-part series here. By Derek Finkle Toronto Life By early 2012, we had three writers […]
The E-Book Show Down: Part One
E-books are emerging as the latest battleground between writers and print publishers seeking to monetize online content. In this “reset” moment, writers need to be sure they set a fair precedent early on. By Derek Finkle October 2010 was a watershed month for e-books. That’s when Amazon announced that Kindle e-books had outsold hardcover […]
Canadian Writers Group launches ebook venture with Russell Smith’s Blindsided
In May last year, the Canadian Writers Group’s Derek Finkle was talking about the need for a long-form journalism platform in Canada similar to sites like Byliner and The Atavist operating in the U.S. This week, CWG launched a series of non-fiction ebooks with novelist and Globe columnist Russell Smith’s Blindsided, a story of about […]
Magazines get in the digital long-form game
In a story for the New York Observer, Emily Witt shares journalist David Dobbs’ digital long-form success story. Working with The Atavist, his long-form piece about his mother’s affair with a flight surgeon during the Second World War sold a “healthy five-figure” number of copies through Kindle Singles. As Dobbs received a dollar for every […]
Freelance class action cheques hit the mail – should we be celebrating?
Freelancers are finally seeing some cash from the Robertson copyright infringement case, but should they be celebrating?
