Why so grim, Doug?

Does anyone agree that the tone of the Ontario Government ads is all wrong?

Since the ads for job protection, nuclear power, pipelines, and the Ring of Fire, started coming to us through our provincial newspaper association’s ad distribution service we have questioned the effectiveness of the dreary, somewhat apocalyptic feel. The aesthetic somehow evokes a sense of danger, despair and hopelessness rather than security and optimism, which one would expect from a government at the beginning of a third term.

Don’t get us wrong, we love the revenue but why is the government choosing to use their ad dollars in this particular way, instead of sharing valuable information about health care, changes in services, and – what everyone really wants to know – how the heck am I supposed to remember to renew my licence and health card if I don’t receive reminders in the mail? And do I have to renew my licence plate? The answer is yes.

Back in 2024 when as part of the provincial government’s effort to promote Ontario-made products, services businesses and workers, it directed its four largest agencies – Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO), the Ontario Cannabis Store, Metrolinx and the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) – to allocate a minimum of 25 per cent of their annual advertising spending for Ontario publishers.

The reason? The agencies spend more than $100 million on marketing each year. “By ensuring that a minimum of 25 per cent of their advertising budgets are reserved for Ontario-based publishers, the government is helping to support these publishers and their workers, who are creating local news content for people across the province. The government is also making similar commitments with its own advertising spending, helping to provide even more support for Ontario jobs and promote Ontario culture.”

As a Qualified Canadian Journalism Organizations (QCJO) The Creemore Echo has been privileged to qualify for the ad buys.

We have long held the position that the best way for government to support newspapers is to advertise. As an advertiser there is total control over messaging. That is why we are appalled by the messaging. This is the campaign that the government has chosen to blanket the province with?

Until now we have cringed at the ads but this week’s crosses a line. It takes aim at homelessness and points to a website that makes no obvious connection to the topic of clearing encampments from Ontario’s parks. It is part of a Protect Ontario campaign that misses the mark entirely. Are we in danger? No, we have a housing crisis and a drug crisis that required compassion and care.

In our opinion the ads are nothing but bleak fear- mongering and don’t represent us as Ontarians.