Did you feel informed during the last federal election? If not, you’re not alone.
A new Ipsos survey reveals a troubling truth: more than half of Canadians felt they didn’t have enough information especially local news to cast a confident vote in the 2025 federal election. And frankly, it’s hard to blame them.
With local newsrooms shuttered across the country and Meta’s ongoing ban on Canadian news content on Facebook and Instagram, voters were left with a dangerous vacuum. One that’s been eagerly filled by social media echo chambers, partisan spin, and half-baked opinions masquerading as facts.
The study, commissioned by the Public Policy Forum (PPF), puts it bluntly: this was likely the most poorly covered federal election in modern Canadian history. And when we consider the stakes—rising economic anxiety, a shifting global order, and the looming shadow of another Trump presidency it’s clear this isn’t just a journalism problem. It’s a democracy problem.
The findings are sobering. Seventy percent of Canadians say that better access to local news would’ve made them better informed voters. Yet the infrastructure to deliver that news has all but crumbled. Where once we had local reporters asking tough questions, now we have candidates promoting themselves unfiltered on their own social media feeds. It’s not information it’s marketing.
Even more disheartening is the influence of social media. Fourteen percent of respondents pointed to Facebook as a key source for election info despite the fact that it no longer carries news in Canada. It’s a testament to how disconnected people have become from reliable journalism. We’re now “wading through the toxic waters of social media,” as the report puts it and drowning in misinformation.
So where do we go from here?
The report, co-authored by seasoned journalists like Tim Harper and Alison Uncles, calls for the creation of a permanent, non-partisan election coverage fund. It’s a step in the right direction. Democracy doesn’t just require access to a ballot it requires access to facts, to context, to accountability. And that starts at the local level.
For too long, we’ve treated local news like an optional feature of democracy. It’s not. It’s the foundation. When we lose it, we don’t just lose coverage we lose connection. To our communities, our candidates, and the issues that matter most.
If we want elections that reflect the will of an informed public and not just the noise of the loudest voices online we need to rebuild the infrastructure of truth.
Because the next election might not just be poorly covered. It might be something much worse: ignored.
