It’s On! Help The Tyee Cut Through Political Spin This Election

Are you ready? Ready for the barrage of political campaign messaging that’s about to come your way as of tomorrow?

The word on the street (the streets of B.C., that is) is that the writ is dropping tomorrow, meaning the campaign period for the next provincial election will be officially underway. That means a whole lot of hopeful candidates vying for your attention and making some big promises.

At The Tyee, we didn’t want to wait to start our election reporting until the actual campaign period. That’s why back in November, we asked Tyee readers to help us fund our BC in the Balance Reporting Project so that we could spend time digging deep on important topics and review the record of our current government.

You did, so we did. For months, Tyee reporters have been doing in-depth reporting on election-related topics like the Site C dam, the Massey Tunnel bridge replacement, the Health Ministry firings, and the most extensive review of the BC Liberals’ 15-year record that you will see anywhere. To see all of the election reporting we’ve been doing up until now, go here.

Now, the political spin machines are getting turned up to full blast. And we want to have all the resources at our disposal to hold the statements, wild promises and attacks up to scrutiny. That’s why we are asking Tyee readers to help us top up our election reporting fund.

Please contribute to the Tyee’s B.C. election reporting fund today.

We need to raise $20,000 to boost our reporting.

We don’t put any of our articles behind a paywall — you don’t need a paid subscription to read The Tyee or get our emails. Instead, from time to time we ask readers to pitch in what they can to support our independent journalists and give them the tools they need to do in-depth reporting on issues that matter.

We think this election is something that truly matters. Here’s what our lean operation can do with support from readers:

• Send The Tyee’s legislative bureau chief, Andrew MacLeod, out on the campaign trail to report back on what candidates are saying in different communities across the province
• Establish an election fact-checking desk, and expose false “alternative facts”
• Create a handy online political platform comparison chart, laying out where the different parties stand on key issues

We also want to empower people in B.C. to participate in media and have their voice heard. As a thank-you for readers who give $75 or more one-time, or sign up for a monthly contribution of $15 or more, you’ll gain entry into a Tyee Master Class webinar with the Tyee’s founding editor, David Beers. In two 90-minute online sessions, you’ll learn how to write compelling opinion pieces and increase your chances of getting them published.

Consider this: The Government of B.C.’s Communications and Public Engagement department has a $26.6-million budget, and political parties have raised millions of dollars to spend on communications and advertising during the campaign period.

At the same time, newspapers in our major cities continue to lay off reporters, right at the moment when we need journalists the most.

This election calls for independent reporting to cut through the spin.

Please support The Tyee’s B.C. election reporting fund today.