t's no secret that the landscape of the journalism industry is profoundly different than it was at the start of the 21st century. The prevalence of the internet has fundamentally altered the way in which people consume print journalism; consequently, it has eroded both circulation and advertising, the primary revenue streams for publications.
These changes have been felt in a different way on university campuses. For example, the University of Ottawa has suspended its journalism program for another year, while Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia closed its journalism school in 2012. Elsewhere, many schools are eschewing the term 'journalism' in favour of 'media' or 'communication' as part of a rebranding effort. Many student publications have also struggled to keep up-to-date with digital industry trends, even though the majority of students consume the news in an interactive, online manner.According to a 2012 survey, 37 per cent of college newspapers within the United States did not have a website in 2012.
The 'McGill School of Journalism' is not undergoing a drastic overhaul because no such school exists, nor has it ever. In Montreal, McGill stands as the exception: UQAM, Concordia, and Universite de Montreal—the other three universities in the city—all have undergraduate journalism programs. However, the aforementioned programs are part of a grand total of only 11 programs Canada-wide—in a nation of 98 degree-granting universities.
Although McGill does not currently have a journalism program, it has had a rich history of undergraduate student publications that have stepped in to fill the void. The resulting mosaic has created an extremely diverse group of news publications that have evolved over time.