The ''Ottawa Citizen'' is an English-language daily newspaper owned by
Postmedia Network in
Ottawa
Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, Canada.
History
Established as ''The Bytown Packet'' in 1845 by
William Harris William or Will or Willie Harris may refer to:
Politicians and political activists
*William Harris (born 1504) (1504–?), MP for Newport, Cornwall
*William Harris (died 1556), MP for Maldon (UK Parliament constituency), Maldon
*William Harris (MP ...
, it was renamed the ''Citizen'' in 1851. The newspaper's original motto, which has recently been returned to the editorial page, was ''Fair play and Day-Light''.
The paper has been through a number of owners. In 1846, Harris sold the paper to
John Bell and
Henry J. Friel.
Robert Bell bought the paper in 1849. In 1877,
Charles Herbert Mackintosh, the editor under Robert Bell, became publisher. In 1879, it became one of several papers owned by the
Southam
Southam () is a market town and civil parish in the Stratford-on-Avon district of Warwickshire, England. Southam is situated on the River Stowe (called 'The Brook' by many locals), which flows from Napton-on-the-Hill and joins Warwickshire's ...
family. It remained under Southam until the chain was purchased by
Conrad Black
Conrad Moffat Black, Baron Black of Crossharbour (born 25 August 1944), is a Canadian-born British former newspaper publisher, businessman, and writer.
His father was businessman George Montegu Black II, who had significant holdings in Canadi ...
's
Hollinger Inc. In 2000, Black sold most of his Canadian holdings, including the flagship
National Post
The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper available in several cities in central and western Canada. The paper is the flagship publication of Postmedia Network and is published Mondays through Saturdays, with ...
to CanWest Global.
The editorial view of the ''Citizen'' has varied with its ownership, taking a
reform
Reform ( lat, reformo) means the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The use of the word in this way emerges in the late 18th century and is believed to originate from Christopher Wyvill#The Yorkshire Associati ...
, anti-Tory position under Harris and a
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...
position under Bell. As part of Southam, it moved to the left, supporting the
Liberals largely in opposition to the
Progressive Conservative Party's support of
free trade
Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. It can also be understood as the free market idea applied to international trade. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold econo ...
in the late 1980s. Under Black, it moved to the right and became a supporter of the
Reform Party. In 2002, its publisher
Russell Mills was dismissed following the publication of a story critical of
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
Jean Chrétien
Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien (; born January 11, 1934) is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 20th prime minister of Canada from 1993 to 2003.
Born and raised in Shawinigan Falls, Quebec, Chrétien is a law graduate from Uni ...
and an editorial calling for Chrétien's resignation. It endorsed the
Conservative Party of Canada
The Conservative Party of Canada (french: Parti conservateur du Canada), colloquially known as the Tories, is a federal political party in Canada. It was formed in 2003 by the merger of the two main right-leaning parties, the Progressive Con ...
in the
2006 federal election.
It published its last Sunday edition on July 15, 2012. The move cut 20 newsroom jobs, and was part of a series of changes made by
Postmedia
Postmedia Network Canada Corp. (also known as Postmedia Network, Postmedia News or Postmedia) is a Canadian media conglomerate consisting of the publishing properties of the former Canwest, with primary operations in newspaper publishing, news ...
.
The pre-2014 logo depicted the top of the
Peace Tower
The Peace Tower (french: link=no, Tour de la Paix) is a focal bell and clock tower sitting on the central axis of the Centre Block of the Canadian parliament buildings in Ottawa, Ontario. The present incarnation replaced the Victoria Tower af ...
of the city's
Parliament Buildings. In 2014, the newspaper adopted a new logo showing the paper's name over an outline of the Peace Tower roof on a green background.
Circulation
Like most
Canadian daily newspapers, the ''Ottawa Citizen'' has seen a decline in
circulation in recent years. Its total circulation dropped by percent to 91,796 copies daily from 2009 to 2015.
:::::::::Daily average
[ Figures refer to the total circulation (print and digital combined) which includes paid and unpaid copies.]
Sections
Daily
* News
* World
* City
* Sports
* Arts
* Business
Weekly
* Food
* Driving
* Technology
* Homes & Condos
Notable staff
*
Bob Ferguson (1931–2014), sports journalist and writer
*
Eddie MacCabe
Edward William Joseph MacCabe (January 15, 1927May 22, 1998) was a Canadian sports journalist and writer. He began in journalism with the '' Ottawa Journal'' in 1946, briefly wrote for the ''Montreal Star'' from 1951 and 1952, then returned to ...
(1927–1998), journalist, sports editor and writer
[; ]
See also
*
List of newspapers in Canada
This list of newspapers in Canada is a list of newspapers printed and distributed in Canada. Daily newspapers
Local weeklies
Alberta
* Airdrie – ''Airdrie Echo''
* Bashaw – '' Bashaw Star''
* Bassano – ''Bassano Times''
* Beaumont – ...
References
Sources
* Adam, Mohammed. (January 2, 2005). "When we began 1845: For 160 years, the Citizen has been the 'heartbeat of the community". ''Ottawa Citizen''.
*
*
* DDC 71.1. LCC PN4907.
External links
*
Official mobile versionCanadian Newspaper Association* [https://news.google.com/archivesearch?as_user_ldate=1800&as_user_hdate=1999&q=source:%22Ottawa%22+source:%22Citizen%22+source:%22-%22+source:%22Google%22+source:%22News%22+source:%22Archive%22&num=10&as_price=p1&scoring=a&hl=en&ned=ca&q=source:%22Ottawa%22+source:%22Citizen%22+source:%22-%22+source:%22Google%22+source:%22News%22+source:%22Archive%22&lnav=od&btnG=Go Google News Archive microfilm archive 1853–1987]
{{Authority control
Newspapers published in Ottawa
Postmedia Network publications
Publications established in 1845
Daily newspapers published in Ontario
1845 establishments in Canada