Catch ‘Under the White Gaze’ in Discussion, Today

What’s this? A newsletter called “Under the White Gaze”? Why would such a thing be necessary in this multicultural country?

That’s what some people told me when The Tyee first announced the special newsletter series in October.

I decided to write it because I felt the need to dive more deeply into issues of race and representation in Canadian media. (I’ve been interested in these topics for a while. You might’ve read the essay I wrote last spring called “Blind Spots"?)

Since October we’ve published nine weekly editions, dissecting everything from stereotypes (model minorities!) to immigrant enclaves (un-Canadian “ghettos”!) to common criticisms of journalism on racial inequality (“Talking about race is racist!”)

The response was tremendous.

Over 5,000 subscribers followed along.

And up to 55 readers wrote in each week — news hounds, students, professors, community planners, other journalists, even a retired senator. People of all colours were “tickled pink” by our topics, said one reader. It was an “uncomfortable” read, in a good way, said another. The responses made for an intimate and lively mailbox section.

CBC took interest, and I did 10 interviews coast-to-coast to talk about the project, chatting with shows like B.C.’s North by Northwest, Halifax’s Mainstreet and the North’s The Weekender. Canadaland gave us a shout out, calling the newsletter “delightful.”

“Under the White Gaze” proved timely, with the recent release of a report on the diversity of the country’s newsrooms, the first of its kind in 15 years. Conducted by the Canadian Association of Journalists, the report revealed that half of Canadian newsrooms are all white. Seventy-five per cent of Canadian journalists are white, and the percentage is higher for managerial positions.

Today, this special project is nearing its end, and we wanted to thank you for the support! A few things…

Our last issue is coming out next Wednesday, and it will include a collection of responses from our readers.

For example, Jane Rosenberg shared about how she used to hide her Jewish last name, but then chose to embrace it later in life. Exclusion and demonization followed.

Candace, born in Canada and the child of Caribbean immigrants, shared how white people have pestered her about where she’s from. “Even at a young age I understood that everything about me was constantly being compared to what was ‘normal,’ or a ‘normal Canadian,’ which did not even mean Indigenous. It meant white,” she wrote.

And many others.

Haven’t been following along?

If you subscribe now here, you can still catch the final issue, which has a link to all our essays.

And a reminder to tune in later today.

I’ll be joining Burnaby Beacon editor Simran Singh today, Dec. 16, from 1 to 2 p.m. PST as we discuss some of the topics from the newsletter in our Teatime Under the White Gaze event.

The event is for subscribers only, so make sure to sign up if you don’t want to miss it. We’ll be taking audience questions. Expect a caffeinated conversation!

What’s next for Under the White Gaze?

We planned it like a season of television, with reverberating themes and a self-contained plot, and we may revive it for a second season in the future.

For now, I’ll be returning to my regular reporting at The Tyee. Time to take off my colour commentator hat (hee hee) and get back in the game.

If this newsletter has built up your appetite for ethnocultural representation and investigations of racial inequality, you can be sure we’re still pursuing it in our regular journalism.