Purpose
Our overarching purpose at re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) is to use the Internet to promote public discussion and the dissemination of knowledge in the area of Canadian politics, with a particular emphasis on Canadian political institutions, processes, and public policy. At re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web), we consider this objective to be vital not only to continued education in Canadian politics, but also to citizenship and democratic participation.
Strategy
In achieving this purpose, re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) adopts an innovative strategy based on four key principles: Accessibility, Quality, Non-partisanship, and Interactivity.
Accessibility
re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) strives to be accessible in two sorts of ways. Firstly, re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) provides it’s content to educators, students, and concerned public on a non-profit basis and free of charge. This ensures that all may have access to information on Canadian politics, regardless of socio-economic status. Secondly, re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) content is written in a style and tone that is open to all persons. This ensures that all may learn about Canadian politics, regardless of their educational background or experience in the field.
Quality
In addition to being accessible, re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) works hard to ensure that its content is of the highest quality, which is accomplished through strict research and writing standards. All re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) writers and editors have advanced degrees and/or personal experience in the field of Canadian politics. Furthermore, re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) has a rigorous editing process, in which all content is vetted through multiple layers of review and revision. This ensures that all information provided by re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) is accurate, comprehensive, fair, and written in a manner that is accessible to a wide audience.
Non-partisanship
re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web)’s only ideology is one of public education and discussion in the field of Canadian politics. Outside of this, re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) does not officially support or seek to promote any moral or political values related to a particular perspective or group. re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) accomplishes this through the institution of several internal policies and procedures. Firstly, re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) maintains strict editorial independence from all of its funders and partners. Secondly, when providing analytic or normative information, re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) always requires the presentation of multiple perspectives and sides in a fair manner. Thirdly, re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) works hard to identify and remove ideological biases by having multiple editors from different political perspectives review its content.
Interactivity
re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) does not view its users as passive participants in the education and discussion process. Instead, re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) actively pursues policies and initiatives that encourage user participation. In this context, re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) provides Discussion Forums and Weblogs, where users may discuss and exchange information on website content or other issues in Canadian and International politics. Moreover, re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) encourages the expression and engagement of a wide range of political views and perspectives, as long as they are expressed in a manner that is respectful to other users.
Culture
re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) pursues an innovative and collegial organizational structure that that takes the best from the worlds of academia, politics, and cyberspace. re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) brings together highly qualified persons from across Canada that share a common interest in Canadian politics, political education, and citizen participation. In order to stay ahead of the curve, re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) encourages discussion and debate amongst its and staff, contributors, and users on how best to produce and present its content. re:politics (formerly, Maple Leaf Web) also constantly strives to maximize the medium of the Internet in order disseminate political information in the most accessible, comprehensive, and interactive manner possible.