Home Thoughts from Abroad – Newseum, Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington, DC

It's amazing what you can find at the Newseum!

Le Journal de Montréal is a daily tabloid newspaper. It is the largest-circulation French-language newspaper in North America; it is also Canada’s largest tabloid. It is famous for its sensationalism and populist Québec-nationalist perspective. On any given day, it can be counted to provide lurid coverage of the weather, crime and Montreal Canadien’s hockey. The front page of the issue of March 8 furnished a splendid example: The trial of two "crapules" (= scumbags); four pages on a late-winter blizzard ("tough on the morale - and it's not over"); and a game against the hated Boston Bruins ("the Habs want their revenge!")

On January 24, 2009, the management of the Journal locked out its unionized staff. For the past two years, the newspaper has continued to publish with the use of strikebreakers, managers, and wire services. So much for populism!