Read All Over

Is there such a thing as a truly national newspaper anymore? This question haunted me as I read A Nation’s Paper, an entertaining and informative essay collection about the Globe and Mail, one of North America’s most influential news organizations, and the seminal role it has played in the events that have shaped Canada.

In the United States, where I was the most senior news editor at the New York Times, the answer to that question would surely be no. News consumption south of the border is as polarized and balkanized as the politics. Times readers are concentrated in the progressive, highly educated, affluent urban areas of the country. Think of it as the national newspaper of Blue America, the part of the country that voted for Kamala Harris. For news consumers in Red America, those who get their news from Fox and conservative podcasters, the Times is viewed as a left-wing rag, publishing what Donald Trump calls “fake...