Welcome to Urban Affairs

From local politics to community leagues, to grassroots initiatives and big plans for our future, Urban Affairs features a diverse group of writers who offer unique stories about this city.

For too long, “scrum journalism” has become the way of our business. Multiple media outlets all covering the same event, the same press conference, with stories that all seem the same. With Urban Affairs, we pledge to go deeper, to go one-on-one with the sources, to speak to the people affected by the changes. We won’t settle for simply writing a story to show that “we were there.”

We also don’t believe in passing off the work of others as ours. We won’t regurgitate headlines and links from other media, and say hey, wow, look at us. We won’t do soft rewrites of someone else’s stories. The current media landscape is filled with faux credit-taking and BS — we are not here to fool readers into liking us.

Every two weeks, you will see a collection of new stories about the issues that affect you on a day-to-day basis. About the curiosities that our city has to offer. About the people who make the stories. About the diverse communities who make up the fabric of Edmonton.

We believe that good journalism, the ability to tell stories, is valuable. And that’s why Urban Affairs will carry a modest subscription fee but, until Jan. 1, 2023, the site is on us. We want to build your trust before asking for a fee.

Welcome to Urban Affairs. We’re glad to have you along.