The ''Ottawa Journal'' was a daily broadsheet newspaper published in Ottawa,

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 C ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, from 1885 to 1980. It was founded in 1885 by A. Woodburn as the ''Ottawa Evening Journal''. Its first editor was John Wesley Dafoe who came from the ''

Winnipeg Free Press The ''Winnipeg Free Press'' (or WFP; founded as the ''Manitoba Free Press'') is a daily (excluding Sunday) broadsheet newspaper in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It provides coverage of local, provincial, national, and international news, as well as ...

''. In 1886, it was bought by

Philip Dansken Ross Philip Dansken Ross (January 1, 1858 – July 5, 1949) was a Canadian journalist, newspaper publisher, and ice hockey administrator. Early life Philip Dansken Ross was born in Montreal to parents Christina Chalmers Dansken and Montreal accountan ...

. The paper began publishing a morning edition in 1917. In 1919, the paper's publishers bought the ''Ottawa Free Press'', whose former owner, E. Norman Smith, then became editor with Grattan O'Leary. In 1959, it was bought by F.P. Publications. By then, the ''Journal'', whose readers tended to come from rural areas, was trailing the ''

Ottawa Citizen The ''Ottawa Citizen'' is an English-language daily newspaper owned by Postmedia Network in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. History Established as ''The Bytown Packet'' in 1845 by William Harris, it was renamed the ''Citizen'' in 1851. The new ...

'', its main competitor. The paper encountered labour problems in the 1970s and never really recovered. In 1980, it was bought by

Thomson Newspapers The Thomson Corporation was one of the world's largest information companies. It was established in 1989 following a merger between International Thomson Organisation Ltd (ITOL) and Thomson Newspapers. In 2008, it purchased Reuters Group to fo ...

and was closed on 27 August 1980. That left

Southam Newspapers 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 ...

's ''

'' as the only major English-language newspaper in Ottawa (''

Le Droit ''Le Droit'' is a Canadian French-language daily newspaper, published in Gatineau, Quebec. Initially established and owned by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, the paper was published by Martin Cauchon and his company, Capitales Médias ...

'' remaining the only French-language daily newspaper in Ottawa). The closure aroused considerable controversy since a day later, Southam closed the ''

Winnipeg Tribune ''The Winnipeg Tribune'' was a metropolitan daily newspaper serving Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada from January 28, 1890 to August 27, 1980. The paper was founded by R.L. Richardson and D.L. McIntyre who acquired the press and premises of the old ' ...

'', the primary rival to Thomson's ''

''. Concern over both incidents prompted the

Government of Canada The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...

to conduct the

Royal Commission on Newspapers The Royal Commission on Newspapers, popularly known as the Kent Commission, was a Canadian Royal Commission chaired by Tom Kent. It was created in 1980 in response to growing concerns over concentration of media ownership in Canada. The Commissi ...

, commonly known as the Kent Commission. To many, it seemed that possibly-illegal collusion to reduce competition had occurred. Charges were brought against both Southam and Thomson in April 1981 under the now-defunct ''

Combines Investigation Act The ''Combines Investigation Act'' was a Canadian Act of Parliament, implemented in 1910, passed in 1923 by MacKenzie King, which regulated certain corporate business practices that were anti-competitive. It prohibited monopolies, misleading adve ...

'' that alleged a breach of section 33 by merger or monopolistic conduct, but they were dismissed on 9 December 1983. Ottawa went without a second major newspaper until the debut of the '' Ottawa Sun'' in 1988. The paper's politics were generally regarded as

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 in ...

Notable staff

Basil O'Meara Basil Edmund "Baz" O'Meara (June 5, 1892 – October 25, 1971), was a Canadian sports journalist. A columnist for the ''Montreal Star'', he won the Elmer Ferguson Memorial Award The Elmer Ferguson Memorial Award is an accolade presented annually ...

, sports editor during the 1920s * Bill Westwick, columnist and sports editor from 1926 to 1973 *

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 ...

, columnist and sports editor from 1946 to 1977

References

Sources

* {{cite book, title= The Journal men: P. D. Ross, E. Norman Smith and Grattan O'Leary of the Ottawa journal, three great Canadian newspapermen and the tradition they created, first= I. Norman, last= Smith, publisher=

McClelland and Stewart McClelland & Stewart Limited is a Canadian publishing company. It is owned by Penguin Random House of Canada, a branch of Penguin Random House, the international book publishing division of German media giant Bertelsmann. History It was found ...

, location= Toronto, year= 1974, isbn= 0-7710-8192-8, pages
191
url= https://archive.org/details/journalmenpdross0000smit/page/191 Newspapers published in Ottawa Defunct newspapers published in Ontario Publications established in 1885 Publications disestablished in 1980 Daily newspapers published in Ontario 1885 establishments in Ontario Conservative media in Canada