Jessica McDiarmid

Career Trajectory: From Local Roots to National Impact

Jessica McDiarmid’s journalism career spans over a decade, marked by a steadfast commitment to uncovering systemic injustices. Growing up near British Columbia’s Highway 16, she witnessed firsthand the disparities facing Indigenous communities—a theme that would later define her groundbreaking work. Her early career saw her reporting on international conflicts, including the civil war in Ivory Coast, where her coverage earned recognition as one of Canada’s Top 40 under 40 journalists in 2011[9].

Pivotal Shift to Investigative Longform

McDiarmid transitioned to investigative journalism with her 2019 book Highway of Tears: A True Story of Racism, Indifference, and the Pursuit of Justice for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. This work, a national bestseller and finalist for the RBC Taylor Prize[3][8], redefined public discourse on Canada’s crisis of violence against Indigenous women. Her methodology combined:

• Decades-long case analysis of 18+ disappearances
• First-person interviews with victims’ families
• Critical examination of policing failures

“The courage of these families astounds me, and being trusted with their stories is the honor of a lifetime.” – McDiarmid on her ethical approach to trauma reporting[5]

Defining Works: Three Pillars of Impact

1. A War Across the River (Harvard Review Online)

This early career piece demonstrated McDiarmid’s ability to contextualize localized conflicts within global human rights frameworks. Analyzing militia violence in sub-Saharan Africa, she employed:

• Embedded frontline reporting techniques
• Intersectional analysis of gender-based violence
• Historical colonial legacy tracing

The article’s juxtaposition of individual narratives with structural critique became a hallmark of her later work on Indigenous issues[5][9].

2. Climate Equity in Urban Planning (Canada’s National Observer)

During her 2022 tenure as Toronto climate reporter, McDiarmid pioneered coverage of environmental justice disparities. Her investigation into heat-related mortality rates exposed:

• 40% higher risk for low-income neighborhoods
• Correlation between tree canopy coverage and income levels
• Policy gaps in municipal climate adaptation plans

This work informed Toronto’s 2023 Green Equity Initiative, showcasing her ability to drive policy through narrative[9].

3. Highway of Tears Book Coverage (Literary Hub)

While not traditional journalism, McDiarmid’s book tour interviews revealed her strategic approach to issue framing. In discussions with Ms. Magazine and Outside, she emphasized:

• Data storytelling – contrasting official statistics with community counts
• Intergenerational trauma documentation
• Solutions-focused reporting on Indigenous-led safety initiatives

Pitching Insights: Aligning with Editorial Priorities

1. Center Indigenous-Led Solutions

McDiarmid prioritizes stories that highlight community-driven responses to systemic issues. Successful pitches should emphasize:
Example: Her coverage of the Highway of Tears Initiative’s volunteer patrol program, which reduced hitchhiking deaths by 60%[5][6].

2. Intersectional Environmentalism

Climate pitches must address disproportionate impacts on marginalized groups. Ideal angles include:
Example: Her 2022 investigation into flood insurance disparities affecting Toronto’s immigrant communities[9].

3. Historical Accountability Framing

Stories should connect present issues to historical policy decisions. Effective approaches mirror:
Example: Her tracing of RCMP practices to 19th-century colonial policing models[3][6].

5 Essential Pitch Elements

• Include oral history preservation components
• Highlight underreported geographic regions
• Provide access to intergenerational voices
• Incorporate verifiable data visualization opportunities
• Identify concrete policy leverage points

Awards and Recognition

RBC Taylor Prize Finalist (2020)

Canada’s premier nonfiction literary honor, judged by Margaret Atwood, recognized Highway of Tears for “redefining true crime narrative ethics.” The jury particularly noted McDiarmid’s decade-long research timeline and collaborative fact-checking process with victims’ families[3][8].

National Magazine Award Finalist

Her investigative series on cross-border drug trafficking routes earned recognition for innovative use of FOIA requests and satellite imagery analysis. This work exposed jurisdictional gaps affecting Indigenous border communities[9].