The exchange of community newspapers is a non-cash transaction that the two companies have been discussing for months. In a statement, Postmedia chief executive officer and executive chairman Paul Godfrey said it is a response to a ‘deeply disrupted industry.’Mark Blinch/The Globe and Mail
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WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Torstar, Postmedia swap community papers, most to close
Canada's two largest newspaper companies, Postmedia and Torstar, have struck a deal to swap 37 community papers and four free commuter ones. The companies will then close many of the newsrooms that once competed in those markets in an effort to deal with declining advertising revenues and a struggling print-media environment. A total of 291 full-time and part-time employees will be laid off as part of the closures.
In a related opinion piece, Bob Cox, Jerry Dias and Edward Greenspon look at why journalism matters more than ever and why we need to help save it.
Predicting life after NAFTA: 'It would not be a disaster'
Consumers would take a hit, the Canadian dollar would fall and economic growth in Canada would be curtailed if NAFTA were terminated, but policy makers and businesses would adjust quickly. This is according to a new Bank of Montreal study that comes amid deadlock in negotiations as Canada and Mexico outright reject key U.S. demands. BMO's chief economist said prices would rise about 1 per cent, but the termination wouldn't be in the same league as the financial crisis of 2008-2009. (For subscribers)
Nine dead in London, Ont., area streptococcus outbreak
The ongoing invasive group A streptococcus outbreak was declared more than 18 months ago and more than 132 cases of infection have been reported since April 1, 2016. The Middlesex-London Health Unit said the majority of streptococcus infections cause relatively mild illnesses like strep throat, but sometimes more serious and potentially life-threatening infections are able to get into muscles, blood and other organs. One doctor said about half the cases have been among injection-drug users and/or people without access to stable housing.
Sex, snakes and spycraft: A lurid tale emerges of a billionaire's ascent to riches in China
How have China's rich amassed their fortunes? The stories of backroom dealing, brutal competition and even spycraft are typically shrouded by the country's powerful elite, who in a country without a free press have often had the tools to keep quiet any unwelcome attention. Now, however, a battle between Chinese authorities and a dissident billionaire has produced a tale that claims to be a bawdy and dark catalogue tell-all, an account with few parallels in its portrayal of a Chinese path to wealth and influence.
'Why the Syrians, but not us?': Yemenis urge Ottawa to act amid humanitarian crisis
The Yemeni civil war, which has been declared the largest humanitarian crisis in the world by the United Nations, is putting 20,000 children under the age of five on the list of severely malnourished every month. But unlike the Syrian case, the Canadian government hasn't started a special refugee program for Yemenis. Canada has welcomed more than 40,000 Syrian refugees, but in 2016, out of the 344 Yemenis who filed refugee claims for resettlement in Canada, only five were accepted. This has the Yemeni-Canadian community asking one simple question to the Canadian government: "Why the Syrians, but not us?"
Saudi Arabia and Iran are the two powerhouses in the region and historic rivals. As the Middle East endured major wars and uprisings over the past 15 years, each side has poured money, arms and fighters into rival factions. Here's a primer on who's siding with whom.
TransCanada to restart Keystone pipeline at reduced rates
TransCanada said Monday that repair and restart plans for the pipeline have been reviewed by the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, permitting the controlled return to service of its Keystone pipeline. The pipeline has been shut for 10 days following a 5,000-barrel spill in South Dakota. The company offered no explanation for the cause of the spill.
This is the daily Evening Update newsletter, a roundup of the important stories of the day and what everyone is talking about that will be delivered to your inbox every weekday around 5 p.m. ET. If you're reading this online, or if someone forwarded this e-mail to you, you can sign up for Evening Update and all Globe newsletters here. Have feedback? Let us know what you think.
MARKET WATCH
Canada's main stock index dropped on Monday as energy companies suffered losses on falling oil prices. The Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index closed down 0.41 per cent to 16,042.12. On Wall Street, U.S. stock indexes were pretty much flat as declining energy shares were offset by gains for Amazon. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.1 per cent to 23,580.78, the S&P 500 lost 0.04 per cent to 2,601.42 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.15 per cent to 6,878.52.
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WHAT'S TRENDING
President Donald Trump called Senator Elizabeth Warren "Pocahontas" at an event honouring Navajo code talkers Monday. Mr. Trump called the code talkers "incredible" and "very special people" and then added: "We have a representative in Congress who they say was here a long time ago. They call her Pocahontas. But you know what, I like you." Mr. Trump has mocked Ms. Warren for claims she made about being part Native American. Ms. Warren called the comments a "racial slur."
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced their engagement at London's Kensington Palace. We have a full gallery of the couple, including her ring.
The union wouldn't have been imaginable without some long-brewing changes in Prince Harry's life and public image and the Royal Family's ancient attitudes about matrimony. Here's a primer on what made the marriage possible and what's next for the couple.
Ms. Markle, an American actor best known for her role in the TV show Suits, has spent much of her time in recent years living on a quiet, tree-lined street in Toronto with her two rescue dogs. This is because Suits films in Toronto. It is also the place where the couple officially unveiled their romance for the first time last spring. We look at why the engagement has special resonance for Torontonians.
TALKING POINTS
Words are powerful but LGBTQ2 equality requires more than a Trudeau apology
"We need to fundamentally transform the social, cultural and economic conditions that continue to foster discrimination against LGBTQ2 people. This means that additional reforms are needed to tackle the problems of income inequality, sexual harassment at work, reproductive rights, the lack of affordable housing, bullying in schools, equal access to health care and the intersection of multiple systems of oppression along racial and cultural lines which continue to bear down on LGBTQ2 people in unique and often subtle ways. So long as they continue to face these obstacles, equality for sexual minorities will remain out of reach." – Brenda Cossman and Daniel Del Gobbo
Canada's dog dumping is a sign of a bigger problem
"The truth is that for every disturbing dog-dumping story deemed newsworthy, there is an even more disturbing number of abandoned and surrendered pets not making headlines, and this is a sign of a much greater problem. As a culture, Canadians lack respect for the duties of dog ownership, and throwing away animals like garbage is just par for the cruel course. Thankfully though, there is another region of the world that shows us it does not have to be this way." – Jessica Scott-Reid
Trump's incoherent war on big media, 'fake news' and CNN
"AT&T is right about the highly unusual nature of the case. The Justice Department almost never seeks to block mergers involving companies that aren't direct competitors. AT&T is a telecommunications giant with interests in satellite TV, mobile-phone service, land lines and internet access. Time Warner is an entertainment conglomerate whose properties include CNN, TNT, HBO, TBS and the Warner Bros. movie studio." (For subscribers) – Barrie McKenna
LIVING BETTER
Your health – including your brain's health – is an aggregate of small choices. Your movement habits are like grooves in a record player: The more frequently your past self moved – or didn't move – a particular way, the deeper the groove will be. Exercise helps keep the brain alive and adaptive. Aerobic exercise improves brain circulation, function and health, while strength and balance training have neural and chemical adaptive possibilities. Kathleen Trotter looks at how you can plan a workout for your brain when hitting the gym.
LONG READS FOR A LONG COMMUTE
Staring back: Are a spiritual leader's sexual relationships a calling or a dangerous abuse of power?
Alberta's John de Ruiter has styled himself as a spiritual leader, a Messianic figure with a piercing gaze. But over the years, allegations of sexual impropriety have surfaced and a young woman has gone missing, leaving her family – and a growing number of adherents – seeking answers.
Learning to forgive: How one woman became friends with the man who murdered her father
On a sunny day in March, 1978, Theodore Van Sluytman kissed his daughter Margot and went to work. Around the same time, Glen Flett and his crew of crooks were preparing for an armed robbery. Hours later, two officers delivered the news that Mr. Van Sluytman was killed in the robbery. The news plunged Margot into unbearable grief. After a decades-long journey of recovery and acceptance, Ms. Van Sluytman now calls her unlikely friendship with Mr. Flett, and the forgiveness in her heart, a miracle.
Evening Update is written by Jordan Chittley and Omair Quadri. If you'd like to receive this newsletter by e-mail every weekday evening, go here to sign up. If you have any feedback, send us a note.