Canadian Communication Thought: Ten Foundational Writers

This is an introduction and examination of the writings of ten foundational Canadian scholars: Graham Spry, Harold Innis, John Grierson, Dallas Smythe, C.B. MacPherson, Irene Spry, George Grant, Gertrude Robinson, Northrop Frye, and Marshall McLuhan. The author compares and critiques the thought of these ten, relates their writings to their biographies and to the Canadian physical and cultural environment, and compares their work to foundational American communication scholars. He finds that there is indeed a mode of theorizing that is quintessentially Canadian. The Canadian writers are much more engaged than their American counterparts with the question of power in communication - with what can generally be regarded as matters of political economy. Their wisdom facilitates the understanding of important issues of our day, for example: globalization, environmental deterioration, rapid technological change in the communication sphere, the erosion of privacy, the diminution of public space, the commodification of information and culture, growing disparities between rich and poor, identity and representation in the media, virtual realities, and the waning of democracy.