The Conversation Canada

Last updated: Feb. 27, 2020

The Conversation is an online platform that publishes journalism written by Canadian scholars.

It specializes in “explanatory journalism” — explaining complex issues in the news, or introducing new ideas of public interest and illuminating them with academic expertise. It’s an ideal outlet for sharing interesting, ongoing research that may not have the urgency or immediacy of a news release, but still relates to issues of public interest. For example, here are a few of the most popular articles by UBC scholars:

The Conversation publishes under a Creative Commons licence, so any media outlet in the world can re-publish its articles.

You can read more here: theconversation.com/ca/who-we-are

Why write for The Conversation?

The Conversation has huge international reach. In addition to Canada, it has editions in Australia, the U.K., the U.S., Africa, France, Indonesia and Spain. They all share content.

Articles by UBC scholars received approximately 3 million views in the two years following The Conversation’s 2017 launch in Canada—an average of more than 20,000 reads per article.

All authors get access to an analytics dashboard that shows you the reach of your articles and can help you demonstrate knowledge mobilization.

How it works

When you write for The Conversation, you are paired with one of their staff journalists who becomes your editor. These editors have worked at The Canadian Press, The New York Times Magazine, and UBC School of Journalism, among other places. They are excellent at identifying your most newsworthy ideas and helping you turn them into articles that will attract a general audience.

You can reference and link to your own scholarship, research and publications.

You also get final approval of your edited article before it is published.

How to pitch an idea

The Conversation’s editors send out regular emails looking for experts who can write about specific topics in the news. When you register as an author with The Conversation, you will receive those emails.

If you see an idea you’re able to take on, you enter your pitch on their website. (You must be registered as an author to access the pitching page.)

You can also pitch your own original ideas.

  • Do you know something few other people know? Would it interest the general public, and not just other specialists?
  • Can you translate tricky issues for a broad Canadian and international audience, using plain language?
  • Do you have a “news hook” that makes your article idea particularly timely or relevant now?

If you answered “yes” to any of the above, you probably have a good idea to pitch.

Pitch first, before you write. In your pitch, make it very clear what you’ll write about. Outline the main points, why it matters, why you’re well-suited to write it, and why now.

How to register

Go to theconversation.com/become-an-author.

Once you’re signed up, you’ll have access to the pitching page where you can submit ideas and have them reviewed by editors.

If they want to pursue it, an editor will contact you and send a brief. They’ll provide a link to your author dashboard. You can write directly into their system, and collaborate with editors in real time.

How UBC Media Relations can help

We are happy to help you narrow down your list of ideas, refine a pitch for submission, or provide tips on writing for a non-academic audience. Just call or send an email to your Faculty Communicator or to the Media Relations Specialist who supports your faculty.