“The media release”

March 12, 2026 · 0 Comments

BY SHERALYN ROMAN

In this business we see a fair few media releases. They are documents sent as a means of communicating with the media, often about upcoming events of interest or, alternatively, when it comes from the municipal, provincial or federal government, one which fulfills a certain purpose. A media release might be about matters the government is required to publish to keep the community informed, or they are used when the government has something to brag about. Typically just one page long, a media release is a “highlight reel” of sorts and can be an invaluable tool for sharing information. After the announcement itself, the one-pager usually includes a little synopsis of the organization who sent it.

So what’s the big deal?

I won’t speak for other members of the editorial team but having been both a sender, and receiver, of many media releases, efficiency demands that they be skimmed quickly rather than dissected intently. Unless you’re me, of course, and something jumps off the page.

With a little more time on my hands, I’ve been paying a bit more attention of late to some of the standard media releases coming from the Town’s communications team. Whether a notification, a good news story or one about how much our taxes will go up if the responsibility for roads is downloaded from Peel Region, they all contain the same message at the end.

It’s a little blurb that states: “Caledon is home to close to 80,000 residents and 4,000 businesses and is well-known for its natural attractions, rural charm and vital role in the economic engine of the Greater Toronto Area.” Further, the blurb acknowledges we are a growing community, and then references our strategic plan with the comment: “Under its current strategic plan, Caledon’s priorities remain environmental leadership, community vitality and livability, enhanced transportation and mobility, and service excellence and accountability.”

Is it just me or does this all sound just a tiny bit disingenuous? I’m sure the population numbers are accurate (at least for now) but “natural attractions?” “Rural charms?” OK, maybe we will agree on the vital role as an “economic engine” since there are so many warehouses, trucks and container yards in Caledon that I assume we must be serving as the economic engine of the entire GTA. As for the other claims, I’m a little dubious.

After all, the words paint a picture of a Caledon that “used to be,” but which, in my opinion, is changing dramatically and not necessarily in a good way. Decisions are being made that have a very real, and potentially negative and harmful impact on our environment. Natural attractions and rural charm are being decimated, not through “environmental leadership,” as the media release proclaims, but rather through a series of decisions that could very well see significant and harmful impacts to our groundwater, agricultural lands, and rural hamlets and villages. Bringing in commercial fill, potentially allowing blasting mega-quarries and building upwards of 35,000 homes will do that.

There is not much to suggest that we are doing any better to enhance transportation, either.

There are untold additional trucks on area roads, servicing hundreds of warehouses and/or ferrying fill, or hauling gravel to and from the many pits and quarries that already dot our landscape. None of this is helping the traffic situation. The somewhat vague promise of GO transit coming “soon” and the lack of any meaningful public transit here also doesn’t exactly “scream” enhanced transportation and mobility.

To be fair to the Town, about the only thing I might agree on – and only in part – is the community vitality portion. One recent media release was a good news announcement about making fitness, healthy living and community connection more accessible to seniors.

Starting April 1, 2026, all rec. centre memberships will be free for Caledon residents 65 years and older. That’s fantastic. For many seniors, living on reduced earnings, or a pension, expenses need to be more closely managed and yet we all know the benefits of both healthy living, and connecting with others in helping to reduce social isolation. So, although the Town failed to acknowledge in the media release any guidance I understand they might have received from an age-friendly task force that included local citizens, I still say kudos on extending this benefit to the senior community. After all, with all this development, traffic and pits being filled while quarries are emptied, it’s not like we will be able to walk outside safely for much longer!

The “media release” serves a purpose to be sure. Whether mandated by law to satisfy “notice to residents” requirements, or to brag about something positive happening around town, local media use the media release as a tool to relay that information to the public. What bears more scrutiny is how they tend to be written, the information that is included (or excluded) and that little blurb at the bottom? Maybe a dose of reality might be more refreshing!