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Dave Obee: What a year it's been, thanks to the pandemic

A year into the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s time for an update on the impact it has had on the Times Colonist. The most obvious impact is in the thickness of the printed newspaper.
Dave Obee
Times Colonist editor-in-chief Dave Obee.

A year into the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s time for an update on the impact it has had on the Times Colonist.

The most obvious impact is in the thickness of the printed newspaper. It’s smaller than in pre-pandemic days because the amount of advertising — traditionally, our main source of revenue — fell off a cliff a year ago this month.

We have tried to avoid reducing the amount of space dedicated to news and features. There are some notable exceptions, such as the Thursday entertainment package. When not much is happening, there is not much to write about.

Our print circulation is up over last year, putting us into select company. Most Canadian dailies have seen declines, so the Times Colonist stands out. We sell more copies per capita than any other newspaper in Western Canada.

Our website has had a phenomenal increase in traffic, up by a third from a year ago. Month after month, readers click on four million pages on timescolonist.com.

That is a credit to our community. For the most part, people of Vancouver Island are interested and engaged, and that is reflected in your support for local media. Thank you for that.

Behind the scenes, the Times Colonist is much like many other businesses on the Island. We are still working with reduced staff hours, and many people are working at home to reduce the risk of getting or spreading COVID-19.

As with other businesses, we are finding that working remotely has advantages and disadvantages.

Local media outlets have a major role to play in a time of crisis, because the community needs information. Readers rely on the Times Colonist, and expect it to be there, day after day, either online or on the doorstep — which it has been, thanks to the carriers who have delivered the paper throughout the pandemic.

On the other hand, our readers have been there for the community, time and time again. It has been heartwarming to witness, and a reminder of the many reasons why we love to live here.

Consider that one year ago today, we launched the biggest fundraising campaign in the history of this newspaper: The Rapid Relief Fund, designed to raise $1 million in one week to help those in need.

The idea for the fund came to us from the Jawl family. Together, we realized that we needed help with the heavy lifting, so we reached out to the Victoria Foundation, which quickly agreed.

As most readers will remember, the fund was a smashing success. We hit $2 million in the first week and $6 million before we wrapped up the campaign in May. The money was put to work as quickly as possible, in keeping with the concept of rapid relief.

It was an unprecedented and stunning statement by the entire community, a confirmation that when times are tough, we come together to help each other. We all worked together to make a difference in a time of great need.

The Victoria Foundation is continuing its great work; the Rapid Relief Fund has evolved into the foundation’s Community Recovery Program.

The community rose to the challenge again last summer, when we could not hold our annual book drive to raise money for literacy work. No books for sale? No problem. Thanks to your support, we still managed to give $241,000 to schools and literacy projects.

And in November and December, the community donated $1.2 million to our Christmas Fund, almost three times the previous high.

Thanks to the advertisers who stayed with us, and a special thanks to everyone who has made the Times Colonist a part of their day.

It’s been a tough year, but the worst is behind us. We have come through this together, and together, we will help the Island recover.

Dave Obee is the publisher and editor of the Times Colonist.