2026 Harvey Southam Lecture with journalist

Stephen Maher

Description

At a time when unity in the face of American threats is crucial, Canadians are divided. While Americans may be on the brink of civil war, Canadians are increasingly sorting ourselves into mutually hostile camps. The fragmentation of our media ecosystem is both cause and symptom. Journalists are being similarly sorted into opposing camps, reporting starkly different stories to divided audiences even as the industry shrinks.

In the Department of Writing’s annual Southam Lecture — held at UVic on Oct 8, 2025 — award-winning political journalist Stephen Maher examined the role reporters play in an increasingly fractured society, arguing that in order to keep faith with a shrinking audience, mainstream journalists need to question their own biases.

Stephen Maher has been writing about Canadian politics since 1989 for the Chronicle Herald, Postmedia News, Maclean’s, Walrus, Time, Times of London, Globe and Mail and the Toronto Star. He has often set the agenda on Parliament Hill, covering political corruption, electoral wrongdoing, misinformation and human rights abuses. He is also the author of The Prince, The Rise and Fall of Justin Trudeau.

The annual Harvey Stevenson Southam Lectureship — named after UVic alumnus Harvey Southam — is made possible by a gift from one of the country’s leading publishing families.