The Government of Canada is supporting two newspaper publications in Brant by investing $19,563 in the Turtle Island News and $3,989 in the Paris Star. The announcement was made today by Phil McColeman, Member of Parliament for Brant, on behalf of the Honourable James Moore, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages.

“Our Government is proud to contribute to weekly newspapers that speak to the members of the communities they serve,” said Mr. McColeman.

The Turtle Island News is Canada’s only national Native weekly newspaper with a circulation of 10,000.

“This funding is very important to us, as it helps to cover postal costs,” said Lynda Powless, Editor and Publisher of the Turtle Island News. “In particular, it helps us to reach the isolated first nation’s communities across Canada, where, in many cases, we are their only newspaper.”

The Paris Star is a weekly publication with a circulation of 1300.

“The Canadian Periodical Funding Program is very important to a community newspaper like the Paris Star,” said Mike Walsh, Publisher. “It provides important support to the day-to-day operations of the paper, which has been serving the Paris community for 150 years.”

The Government of Canada has provided funding under the Aid to Publishers component of the Canada Periodical Fund (CPF). The Fund invests in periodicals to help increase the overall health of the Canadian magazine and non-daily newspaper industries. Publishers are able to use funding to support the creation of content, production, distribution, online activities, or business development, allowing them to better respond to a complex marketplace. Through this fund, the Government of Canada is working to ensure that Canadians continue to have access to high quality content from Canadian print magazines and non-daily newspapers.