Ryerson Review of Journalism

Tonight I dropped by the launch party for the new issues of the Ryerson Review of Journalism at the Hotel Boutique Lounge -- always a pleasant little do that's well-attended by the usual suspects in the Toronto magazine biz. The newly minted School of Journalism grads, who produce the magazines in their final year at Ryerson University, get to hobnob with the Ken Alexanders, Ian Browns, Antonia Zerbisiases and Allan Fotheringhams, and the journalists who've been profiled scurry off with the fresh-off-the-press copies to read about themselves in the dim corners of the room.

Aside from numerous Canadian National Magazine Awards, the Ryerson Review of Journalism has also won quite a few awards from the Association of Educators in Journalism and Mass Communication in the United States (competing successfully with the likes of the Columbia Journalism Review), as well as a couple of Rolling Stone Magazine College Journalism Awards and a glowing citation in Utne Reader. It's always an interesting read, and one of the only places you can find long-form articles on the state of journalism in Canada. The students also produce regular coverage of the scene on the RRJ website (and a blog) throughout the school year.

I taught most of this year's crop of students in my Magazine Fundamentals course last year, and they were an exceptionally great group. I've read most of the "spring" issue (two issues come out about 10 days apart), and I especially recommend Joe Castaldo's piece on Ken Whyte's takeover of Maclean's. I was also impressed by Barry Hertz's profile of Globe and Mail columnist John Ibbitson in the "summer" issue, and I look forward to reading the rest.

The summer issue's cover line is "Is Journalism Dead?" Hmmm...a number of the grads told me tonight that they were going into public relations...

You can subscribe to the RRJ online, and it is available on some newsstands (Ryerson's bookstore being one of them).