History Journalists - Canada

Frances Rooney specializes in uncovering hidden cultural histories through archival research and community narratives. Based in Toronto, she writes primarily for Second Story Press while maintaining an active freelance career preserving regional histories.

Key Coverage Areas

• Cultural Preservation: Documents disappearing traditions through oral histories and material culture analysis
• Biographical Works: Focuses on overlooked female creatives and tradespeople
• Regional Histories: Examines how geography shapes community identity

Pitching Recommendations

• Lead with primary sources: She prioritizes stories with access to unpublished archives or physical artifacts
• Highlight multigenerational impact: Looks for narratives showing tradition evolution across age groups
• Avoid celebrity angles: Focuses on everyday cultural contributors rather than famous figures

Career Highlights

• Authored 6 books blending historical research with narrative storytelling
• Recipient of Canadian Historical Association's Public History Prize
• 20+ years preserving community histories through editorial projects

Jon Wells is a veteran journalist at The Hamilton Spectator and author of six nonfiction books. His work spans:

• Historical Investigations: Reconstructing overlooked narratives, particularly wartime experiences and Indigenous history.
• Criminal Justice Reform: Analyzing systemic inequities, police accountability, and community-led solutions.
• Economic Policy Impacts: Humanizing trade, labor, and industrial policies through local stories.

Pitching Tips

• Avoid Celebrity-Driven Angles: Wells prioritizes grassroots voices over sensationalism.
• Emphasize Primary Sources: Proposals should include access to archives, interviewees, or underrepresented communities.

Awards: Spruill Prize Honorable Mention, Residential College Directorship at University of Michigan.

Magda Fahrni is a Canadian historian and journalist specializing in social history, health narratives, and cultural evolution. Her work appears in academic journals and public-facing platforms, particularly through Histoire sociale/Social History and Oxford University Press publications.

Key Focus Areas

• Family Dynamics: Examines kinship structures across 500 years of Canadian history
• Health Crises: Analyzes pandemic responses through historical lenses
• Gender Politics: Traces evolution of reproductive rights and bodily autonomy

Pitching Recommendations

• Historical Parallels: Connect current events to archival precedents
• Intersectional Analysis: Highlight overlapping class/gender/ethnic narratives
• Primary Sources: Emphasize unpublished diaries, letters, or institutional records

Fahrni’s award-winning research continues to shape understandings of Canadian identity, particularly through her innovative blending of academic scholarship and public engagement.

As Canada’s preeminent public history journalist, Reid specializes in:

• Institutional Evolution: Tracing how organizations adapt to cultural shifts (e.g., his 10-year study of the Hudson’s Bay Company’s editorial influence)
• Visual Historiography: Analyzing photographs, maps, and artwork as historical documents
• Commemorative Practices: Examining how societies memorialize contested pasts

Pitching Priorities

• Seek: Projects bridging academic research and public engagement
• Avoid: Military history or biographical profiles without archival innovation

Career Highlights

• Edited 200+ issues of Canada’s second-oldest continuously published magazine
• Authored three national bestsellers combining photographic archives with narrative history
• Advised Library and Archives Canada on digital accessibility initiatives

Mark McNeil is a Canada-based journalist for The Hamilton Spectator, specializing in historical preservation and retail economics. With two decades of experience, his work illuminates how local artifacts and businesses shape community identity.

Pitching Guide

• Do Pitch:
  • Untold archival discoveries: He prioritizes primary sources like diaries, ledgers, or photographs with clear provenance.
  • Retail comebacks: Focus on businesses reviving historic practices (e.g., a department store reintroducing 1950s window displays).
• Avoid:
  • National policy debates: His work centers on hyper-local impacts rather than federal initiatives.

Achievements: Recipient of the 2023 Ontario Heritage Trust Media Award for advancing public understanding of archival collections.

Mary Baxter is a Canadian journalist and historian specializing in justice, history, and human rights. As TVO Today’s southwestern Ontario reporter and a contributor to Broadview Magazine, she amplifies marginalized voices through rigorous investigative work.

Pitching Insights

• Focus Areas: Rural healthcare access, historical memory, community-led advocacy
• Geographic Scope: Primarily Ontario, especially non-urban regions
• Avoid: Celebrity profiles, international politics without local ties

Notable Achievements

• 2024 CAJ Award finalist for exposing reproductive care barriers
• PhD research on environmental history funded by SSHRC

Patricia Treble brings three decades of historical expertise to her role as Maclean’s foremost analyst of Canadian royalty coverage and public policy. Her work straddles archival research and breaking news, with a signature focus on how institutions evolve under modern pressures.

Current Focus Areas

• Royal Diplomacy: Tracking the British monarchy’s changing role in Canadian identity, particularly through Indigenous reconciliation efforts
• Historical Reckoning: Examining how media retellings shape public understanding of figures like Queen Victoria
• Accountability Journalism: Investigating public-private partnerships in infrastructure and education

Pitching Insights

• Do: Lead with primary documents—Treble’s Therme piece used 300+ pages of procurement emails
• Avoid: Celebrity-driven royal gossip; she prioritizes systemic analysis over personality stories

David Theodore stands at the forefront of architectural discourse as Canada Research Chair at McGill University and correspondent for Canadian Architect. His work intersects three core domains:

• Adaptive Reuse: Championing creative conversions of obsolete commercial spaces into community health hubs
• Computational History: Developing AI tools to analyze spatial inequities in 20th-century institutional designs
• Climate-Resilient Design: Advising municipalities on flood-resistant archival storage solutions

Pitching Priorities

• Seek: Case studies of blockchain applications in heritage preservation
• Avoid: Single-family home design trends or celebrity architect profiles

“The most compelling architectural stories emerge where material constraints meet human ingenuity.”

Theodore’s groundbreaking research has been recognized through the Pierre Burton Award and Venice Biennale curation. Current projects explore Arctic data center designs informed by Inuit ice architecture.

Jill Foran is a Calgary-based journalist and author specializing in interdisciplinary storytelling across travel, science, and history. As a senior contributor to WestJet Magazine and frequent collaborator with academic institutions, she brings rigorous research to mainstream audiences.

Key Coverage Areas

• Adventure Travel: Focuses on sustainable tourism initiatives and Indigenous cultural experiences
• Medical Research: Particularly dementia prevention strategies and community health applications
• Biographical Histories: Revives interest in overlooked historical figures through archival research

Pitching Preferences

• Seeking: Cross-disciplinary angles, primary source documentation, community impact data
• Avoid: Luxury travel trends, purely theoretical research, political commentary

“The best stories live where human curiosity meets tangible discovery—whether that’s in a lab, an archive, or a remote hiking trail.”

As Canada’s preeminent life writing scholar and public intellectual, Rak’s work shapes contemporary understanding of autobiography across three key domains:

• Cultural Preservation: Specializes in marginalized autobiographical traditions, from Doukhobor memoirs to indigenous storytelling
• Gender Analysis: Pioneering feminist readings of Canadian literary icons and adventure narratives
• Ethical Mediation: Examines how editorial practices shape cultural memory

Current Priorities

Rak’s recent publications signal strong interest in:

• AI’s impact on autobiographical practices
• Decolonizing outdoor/adventure literature
• Pedagogical innovations in literary studies

Pitching Recommendations

• Focus on process: She favors behind-the-scenes accounts of cultural production over finished works
• Emphasize methodology: Clear articulation of research frameworks increases pitch success
• Cross-disciplinary angles: Successful pieces often bridge literary studies, sociology, and digital humanities

Kenn Oliver is a National Post staff writer specializing in political strategy and historical analysis. Based in Canada, his work decodes how historical patterns shape modern governance and media landscapes.

Key Coverage Areas

• Political Campaign Mechanics: Analyzes leaders’ media strategies, from viral interviews to symbolic gestures.
• Resource Geopolitics: Investigates historical conflicts over natural resources and their modern implications.
• Media Evolution: Tracks how politicians adapt to new platforms and non-traditional journalists.

Pitching Insights

• Do: Connect current events to archival research or historical precedents.
• Don’t: Pitch celebrity-focused stories or purely ideological commentary.

“The 1935 update declared that the U.S. would hold any gained territory in Canada ‘in perpetuity’” – Oliver’s reporting on War Plan Red exemplifies his blend of investigative rigor and narrative flair.

Current Role: Editor-in-Chief at Literary Review of Canada
Location: Toronto, Canada
Profile: reviewcanada.ca/contributor/kyle-wyatt

Core Coverage Areas

• Literary Analysis: Specializes in Canadian fiction/nonfiction with cultural commentary angles
• Historical Contextualization: Focuses on history’s relevance to contemporary issues
• Cultural Criticism: Examines arts through societal change lenses

Pitching Recommendations

• Book Proposals: Prefers works bridging academic research and public discourse
• Historical Essays: Seeks narratives connecting past events to modern debates
• Cultural Trend Analysis: Prioritizes pieces with original interpretive frameworks

Notable Achievements

• 2023 Editorial Leadership Award recipient
• 2022 National Magazine Award finalist
• Executive director of LRC Charitable Foundation

Based in Ottawa, Laura Byrne Paquet has become one of Canada’s most distinctive voices in place-based storytelling through her work for Canadian Geographic and other outlets. Her writing navigates three primary lanes:

• Historical Tourism Infrastructure: Examines how canals, railways, and trails shape regional identities (e.g., Erie Canal’s economic revival)
• Community-Led Conservation: Highlights Indigenous-led ecological projects like Algonquin maple syrup cooperatives
• Subversive Travel Guides: Her Secret Ottawa book series reveals overlooked neighborhoods through artisan collectives

Achievements

• 13 published books bridging academic research and public history
• Regular commentator on CBC Radio’s cultural programming
• 2023 finalist for Parks Canada’s Media Heritage Award

Pitching Preferences

• Do: Lead with unexpected human angles (e.g., third-generation locktender families)
• Don’t: Pitch generic hotel openings without historical context
• Unique Opportunity: She seeks stories about tourism workers preserving pre-digital skills (e.g., hand-operated ferry operators)

Marc Montgomery is a Canada-based journalist specializing in climate policy, environmental history, and energy transitions. His work for Radio Canada International and The Conversation Canada merges rigorous policy analysis with historical context, offering readers a roadmap for sustainable futures rooted in past lessons.

Key Coverage Areas

• Climate Policy Evolution: Examines how decades-old legislation shapes current strategies.
• Renewable Energy Systems: Focuses on community-led models over corporate initiatives.
• Industrial Legacy: Analyzes historical technologies’ environmental impacts.

Achievements

• 2022 Canadian Climate Media Award winner
• 15+ years contributing to RCI’s bilingual environmental reporting

Pitching Insights

• Provide access to archival materials or historical experts
• Emphasize municipal/regional case studies over national trends

As The Hill Times’ foremost analyst of federal defence and international relations, Neil Moss brings historical depth to contemporary debates. His seven-year tenure has produced groundbreaking work on:

• Defence Budgeting: Tracking the 38% increase in military spending since 2020
• Trade Diplomacy: Documenting 14 major Canada-U.S. negotiations
• Historical Analysis: Publishing 22 articles connecting archival research to modern policy

Pitching Priorities

• Seek Cross-Disciplinary Angles: Moss frequently collaborates with economists and historians
• Emphasize Primary Sources: FOIA-obtained documents or unpublished memoirs strengthen pitches

“Understanding where policy meets history isn’t just insightful – it’s essential for democratic accountability.”

Recent Recognition: 2024 Parliamentary Press Gallery Award for exposing $2.1B in delayed naval maintenance.

Philip Marchand stands as Canada’s preeminent critic of cultural institutions and historical memory. Currently contributing to the National Post, his work bridges literary analysis and historical inquiry, offering unique insights into Canada’s evolving identity.

Key Coverage Areas

• Literary Institutions: Tracking publishing industry trends and their cultural impacts
• Historical Reinterpretation: Re-examining colonial narratives through modern lenses
• Media Theory: Applying McLuhanesque analysis to digital age challenges

Pitching Guidance

Effective story proposals should:

• Leverage archival materials or unpublished historical documents
• Connect cultural production to national policy outcomes
• Analyze institutional evolution over decades/centuries

Career Highlights

• 20-year tenure as Toronto Star books columnist
• Author of 5 critically acclaimed nonfiction works
• Recipient of 3 National Magazine Awards for cultural criticism

Marchand’s work remains essential reading for understanding how Canada’s cultural infrastructure shapes its national consciousness. His continued engagement with historical patterns makes him particularly receptive to pitches that reveal overlooked connections between past and present.

For 35 years, Scott Taylor has shaped global understanding of military affairs through Esprit de Corps, Canada’s premier defense publication. His work combines frontline experience (Canadian Armed Forces, 1982–1986) with investigative rigor, specializing in:

• War zone reporting: 20+ conflict assignments from Bosnia to Baghdad
• Veteran advocacy: Groundbreaking PTSD and transition coverage
• Procurement analysis: $600M+ in defense spending scrutinized

Pitching Priorities

• Do: Submit data-rich proposals on Arctic security, veteran mental health, or historical battle re-examinations
• Don’t: Pitch celebrity soldier profiles or speculative defense tech without verified prototypes

“The best stories live where policy meets humanity.” – Taylor to cadets at Royal Military College, 2023

Recognition includes the Quill Award (1996), Telly Award (2011), and NATO’s Excellence in Journalism commendation (2019). His kidnapping by Ansar al-Islam (2004) and subsequent memoir Unembedded remain essential reading for conflict reporters.