Company Description
Home to the Toronto Star, Canada's largest daily newspaper, and other trusted brands including The Hamilton Spectator, Waterloo Region Record, The Peterborough Examiner, St. Catharines Standard, Welland Tribune, Niagara Falls Review and over a dozen local community news sites, Torstar is a progressive media organization dedicated to impactful journalism, community engagement and storytelling with purpose. Torstar is committed to innovation, audience engagement, and the long-term sustainability of high-quality journalism in an increasingly complex and fast-changing media landscape. With the thoughtful integration of emerging technologies like data analytics, Al-powered tools and modern content platforms, we deliver high-quality trusted news with speed, precision and interactivity. Our continuous evolution reflects our deep commitment to innovation in the service of journalism, ensuring that our newsrooms remain agile, audience-centric, and equipped to thrive in a rapidly evolving digital media ecosystem, without ever sacrificing reader trust.
Our Commitment to Diversity
We strive to be a leader in building and cultivating an employee community framed around fairness, support and opportunity. We believe that what makes us different, makes a difference. And as a team, the diversity of our backgrounds, interests and experiences is what enriches our work, and our workplaces. We welcome all, and we strive for an inclusive culture that allows individual growth and shared success.
Job Description
The Public Relations and Brand Engagement Associate supports the Director in delivering Torstar's external communications strategy. This is a tactical, hands-on role that touches every area of the team's mandate, from media relations and events to brand campaigns and executive support. The Associate is organized, a strong writer, and comfortable working in a fast-moving environment where priorities can shift quickly.
Key responsibilities:
External Communications & Media Relations
Assist in preparing backgrounders, Q&As, fact sheets, and briefing materials for media inquiries and external engagements.
External Communications Calendar
Maintain and update Torstar's external communications calendar, tracking upcoming announcements, events, campaign launches, and editorial moments.
Executive & Staff Support
Brand Engagement & External Opportunities
Support the coordination and execution of consumer-facing brand engagement campaigns, contributing to drafting, scheduling, and logistics.
Research and track external partnership opportunities - including film, television, live events, and sponsorships - and prepare summaries and recommendations for the Director.
Liaise with internal teams including editorial, product, and revenue to gather content, align messaging, and support cross-functional initiatives.
Events & External Outreach
Digital & Social Media
Track key metrics including media mentions, share of voice, and campaign performance, and maintain organized records for ongoing reference.
Agency & Vendor Coordination
Qualifications
- Post-secondary education in communications, public relations or related field or relevant demonstrable experience
- 1 – 3 years of relevant experience
- Portfolio of writing samples (news releases, pitches, social copy, briefing materials)
- Demonstrated experience with media databases, calendar management tools, or similar tools and platforms.
Deadline to apply is October 2, 2026
Additional Information
We are committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free recruitment process ensuring equal access to employment opportunities for candidates, including persons with disabilities. In compliance with Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act and Ontario Human Rights Code we will endeavour to provide accommodation to persons with disabilities in the recruitment process upon request. If you are selected for an interview and you require accommodation due to a disability during the recruitment process, please notify the hiring manager upon scheduling the interview of your requirements.
This posting is for an existing vacancy. Our Applicant Tracking System (ATS) uses AI for initial screening and assessment; however, all final selection decisions are made by our Hiring Managers.
