There are roughly 300,000 Canadians of Jamaican heritage living across this country — in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, and yes, even in New Brunswick. They are nurses, teachers, engineers, athletes, artists, and community leaders. They are raising families, building businesses, and shaping Canadian culture in ways that rarely make the front page.
That gap — between the size and significance of the Canadian-Jamaican community and the near-total absence of dedicated media coverage — is exactly why CanJam News exists.
A Community Without a Newsroom
Walk into any major Canadian newsroom and ask how many reporters are dedicated to covering the Canadian-Jamaican beat. The answer, almost universally, is zero.
This isn't a criticism of Canadian journalism. It's a reflection of how media has historically been organized — by geography, by language, by the dominant cultural majority. The result is that an entire community's stories go untold, or are told only when they fit a narrow narrative: crime, immigration, or the occasional feel-good sports story.
CanJam News was founded to change that.
What We Actually Cover
Our coverage spans six categories, each chosen because they reflect the real texture of Canadian-Jamaican life:
New Brunswick is our home base, and it's a place where the Caribbean community is growing faster than most Canadians realize. From Moncton to Fredericton, we cover the stories that local outlets miss — community events, civic issues, and the daily lives of people who've made Atlantic Canada their home.
Canada gives us the national lens. Whether it's federal policy that affects Caribbean-Canadians, cultural milestones, or stories of achievement, we cover the country through a community-aware perspective.
Jamaica is the other half of our mandate. We maintain active coverage of Jamaican news — politics, economics, culture, and society — because our readers have deep ties to the island and deserve to stay informed.
USA & World rounds out the picture. The Caribbean diaspora is a global community, and stories from the United States, the United Kingdom, and beyond often have direct relevance to our readers in Canada.
Sports is where Canadian-Jamaican identity shines brightest. From track and field to hockey to cricket, we cover the athletes who carry both flags with pride.
Events keeps our community connected — from cultural festivals to community fundraisers to diaspora gatherings across the country.
The Stories That Sparked Us
Some of the stories that have defined CanJam News in our early months give a sense of what we mean by "the beat no one else covers."
When Air Jamaica's potential revival became a real conversation, we were there — not just reporting the news, but providing the context that only a newsroom with deep roots in both countries could offer. We understood what Air Jamaica meant to the diaspora, to the families who flew home for Christmas, to the Jamaican-Canadians who remember the airline as a symbol of national pride.
When the question of Jamaican reparations and King Charles's role came to the fore, we covered it with the nuance it deserved — not as a distant political story, but as something with direct meaning for Canadians whose families lived through the history being debated.
When a shooting occurred in Moncton's Marsh Street neighbourhood, we were on the ground, covering a story that mattered deeply to a community that often feels invisible in mainstream Canadian media.
These are not niche stories. They are Canadian stories.
Why Independent Media Matters
CanJam News is independently owned and operated. We don't answer to a corporate parent, a political party, or an advertiser with an agenda. Our only obligation is to our readers and to the truth.
In an era when local and community media is disappearing across Canada, independent outlets like CanJam News are more important than ever. We fill gaps that larger organizations can't or won't fill. We give voice to communities that have been systematically underrepresented in Canadian public life.
And we do it for free. No paywalls. No subscriptions. Quality journalism that's accessible to everyone.
What Comes Next
We're still a young newsroom, but we're growing. With over 40 published articles and a readership that spans Canada and Jamaica, we're building something that this community has needed for a long time.
We're looking for readers who care about these stories, who will share them with their networks, and who understand that the health of a community's media is inseparable from the health of the community itself.
If you've ever felt that Canadian media doesn't quite see you — doesn't cover the stories that matter to your family, your heritage, your community — then CanJam News is for you.
Read our latest coverage and see what we're building. We think you'll recognize yourself in these pages.