Montreal is a city of three million people, and with that large of a population there are many different view points screaming to be heard in the local media. There is also the added wrinkle of having two main languages spoken in the city, each with its own at times fragmented perspective. What this means for the average Montrealer is that there is no shortage of newspapers out there offering their particular spin on the local and international news of the day.
The French papers
There are three main French-language newspapers published in Montreal, spread across the entire media spectrum. The most respected of the three is Le Devoir. Le Devoir was established in 1910 by Quebec political hero Henri Bourassa. While the paper has historically reported from the perspective of Quebec Nationalism, it has from time to time wavered in this viewpoint, and regardless of its political orientation it is widely respected in the city and internationally for balanced reporting and quality journalism.
Le Journal de Montreal is another case entirely. Published in the tabloid format, the front page seems to be exclusively reserved for sensationalist photographs and scandalous headlines. Car crashes, celebrity arrests and provincial flag waving are all to often writ large in boldface type and breathless prose. The paper is not taken seriously as a media outlet, but it still finds a large audience in the province.
Somewhere in the middle is La Presse, another paper with a long history in the city, dating back to 1884. The paper has a similar balanced reporting style to that of Le Devoir, although it tends to take the opposing federalist viewpoint when it comes to the question of Quebec’s sovereignty. La Press aims for a cerebral audience, one that is interested in Quebec but also Quebec’s context within the world at large, and it also focuses on the arts.
The English newspaper
You may notice the use of the singular when referring to Montreal’s English daily publications. While there are several minor weekly papers available in some neighborhoods, the Montreal Gazette is the only daily paper published in English on the island. As such, it has quite a monopoly in the market, and it plays up this fact endlessly in its advertising. Published since 1795, the Gazette is owned by Canwest, a national chain of newspapers. Much of the content is culled from the general pool of stories covered by the chain, and editorial bias also stems from the head office, sometimes making the Gazette seem a bit out of step with the Quebec population. It is a heavily read paper, by both Francophones and Anglophones.
The Freebies
Montreal is home to several free publications, some printed daily and some weekly. For those traveling the metro system, Metro newspapers are available at every station. This Swedish newspaper chain provides general French-language daily news to riders across the city. Quebecor Media publishes a competing free daily called “24 heures“, (24 hours) which has a similar format, although with a more local focus. 24 heures is also not limited to metro distribution.
On the English side, there is the choice between The Hour and The Mirror, both published weekly, and both offering almost identical coverage of mostly Montreal news from a somewhat alternative perspective. The papers sometimes seem to have the same editorial team as cover stories are often the same and it can be quite difficult to tell the two papers apart. Both are excellent sources of upcoming event information in the city, especially as it pertains to music, art or dance.
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