The Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ) or L'Association Canadienne des Journalistes in French is one of several Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 organizations of journalist

Journalist

A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...

s. It was created to promote excellence in journalism

Journalism

Journalism is the practice of investigation and reporting of events, issues and trends to a broad audience in a timely fashion. Though there are many variations of journalism, the ideal is to inform the intended audience. Along with covering organizations and institutions such as government and...

 and encourage investigative journalism

Investigative journalism

Investigative journalism is a form of journalism in which reporters deeply investigate a single topic of interest, often involving crime, political corruption, or corporate wrongdoing. An investigative journalist may spend months or years researching and preparing a report. Investigative journalism...

. The CAJ is one of several national voices for Canadian journalists-- the only one with a coast-to-coast presence and run by journalists practising across all media.

History

The CAJ was founded in 1978 as the Centre for Investigative Journalism (CIJ). A few senior Canadian journalists founded the CIJ to counteract the isolation of the one or two reporters in the average newsroom who did investigative work. One of CIJ's initiatives was the Canadian Committee to Protect Journalists, a press freedom group that later became Canadian Journalists for Free Expression

Canadian Journalists for Free Expression

Canadian Journalists for Free Expression is a Canadian non-governmental organization supported by Canadian journalists and advocates of freedom of expression. The purpose of the organization is to defend the rights of journalists and contribute to the development of press freedom throughout the...

(CJFE). In 1990, the organization changed its name to its current form to reflect a broader emphasis on all journalism and attract additional members. Promoting investigate journalism remains one of the CAJ's main goals.

Awards

The CAJ holds an annual conference during which it presents various awards including a Computer-Assisted Reporting award. In addition to awards for professional excellence, the CAJ presents a Code of Silence Award to celebrate "Canada's rich bureaucratic culture of secrecy."

At the 'Muck Rake 2004' conference in Vancouver in May, 2004, the federal government Health Canada department won its third Code of Silence award. Winners since then include the federal department of foreign affairs in 2008, Prime Minister Stephen Harper

Stephen Harper

Stephen Joseph Harper is the 22nd and current Prime Minister of Canada and leader of the Conservative Party. Harper became prime minister when his party formed a minority government after the 2006 federal election...

's office in 2009 and the Toronto Police Service

Toronto Police Service

The Toronto Police Service , formerly the Metropolitan Toronto Police, is the police service for the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the largest municipal police service in Canada and second largest police force in Canada after the Royal Canadian Mounted Police...

in 2010.

Governance

The CAJ is governed by a board of directors, elected by chapters or through regional or national elections held prior to the annual meeting. Members of the board must be practising journalists as defined by the CAJ bylaws.
The 2010-11 CAJ board of directors:
President Mary Agnes Welch, Winnipeg Free Press (Manitoba region representative)
Vice-president Hugo Rodrigues, Sentinel-Review, Woodstock, Ont. (National director)
Chair Dale Bass, Kamloops Daily News, Kamloops B.C. (B.C. region representative)
Past-president Paul Schneidereit, Chronicle-Herald, Halifax, N.S.
National director Elizabeth Thompson, ipolitics.ca, Ottawa, Ont.
National director David Wiwchar, Independent, B.C.
National Capital Region chapter director Simon Doyle, the Wire Report, Ottawa, Ont.
Montreal Chapter President Roger-Luc Chayer, Le Groupe National, Montreal, Qc
Montreal Chapter Vice-president, Anja Karadeglija