Taxpayers Foot the Bill: Village Media’s Government-Funded Lifeline and Ethical Quagmire

### Taxpayers Foot the Bill: Village Media’s Government-Funded Lifeline and Ethical Quagmire

In Northern Ontario, Village Media and its flagship site Sudbury.com position themselves as vital voices of local, independent journalism. But beneath the polished surface lies a troubling reality: a media company propped up by Canadian taxpayers, pulled from the brink of financial ruin by a flood of federal grants, and shadowed by allegations of misconduct that shred its credibility.

#### A Taxpayer-Funded Windfall

Village Media has tapped into a deep well of public money from the Federal Government of Canada. The Open Canada Grants and Contributions database lays it bare: on March 31, 2023, they scored $333,750 through the Local Journalism Initiative (LJI) to revamp their website. A year earlier, on April 1, 2022, they pocketed $200,000 via the Canada Periodical Fund (CPF) Special Measures for Journalism to weave AI into their platform—aping features of X. That’s $533,750 for a digital glow-up. Independent developers we consulted say a comparable site, AI included, could be built for under $10,000—a figure echoed by Clutch’s 2022 industry benchmark of $5,000-$15,000. Where did the other half-million go?

This isn’t a one-off. Since 2019, Village Media has hauled in at least $2,376,750 in federal grants: $645,000 on April 1, 2021, $654,000 on April 1, 2020, and $544,000 on April 1, 2019, all under CPF programs to prop up flagging operations. That’s $2.3 million-plus—more than your initial $2M estimate—and a lifeline for a company reportedly drowning in a shrinking ad market. Industry reports from 2020 peg Northern Ontario outlets like Village Media with a 40% revenue drop pre-pandemic. Why are taxpayers bailing out a private firm to chase tech trends when cheaper options were on the table?

#### Reporters Turned Aggressors

The cash isn’t the only stain. Sudbury.com reporter Len Gillis allegedly assaulted female protesters—physically and verbally—during local events. A 2021 Wellandtribune.ca report on a Sudbury anti-vaccine rally hints at media-protester friction, though Gillis’s role remains anecdotal. Witnesses claim he targeted women voicing dissent, morphing from journalist to aggressor. Village Media’s response? Silence.

Chief Editor Mark Gentili’s tenure is just as murky. Under his watch, Sudbury.com has been accused of slandering COVID-19 mandate opponents, slapping them with labels like “anti-science” in a 2021 article that ignited local fury. Worse, evidence points to the outlet egging on online attacks against protest organizers. X posts from 2021 show Village Media-linked accounts boosting calls to “name and shame” activists, stoking digital mobbery. When we pressed Gentili and Village Media for comment, they stonewalled us—a dodge that clashes with their “community voice” branding

Alberta Reports: Jason LaFace