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Founded in 1892, the Toronto Star (originally the Evening Star and later the Toronto Daily Star) grew under the direction of Joseph E. Atkinson, who became editor and manager of the newspaper in 1899. The newspaper was officially named the Toronto Star in 1971. As of April 2015, the Toronto Star is Canada’s largest daily newspaper.

Newcombe Piano Co., Ltd. was founded in Toronto by Octavius Newcombe in 1878. The quality of Newcombe pianos were recognized at several international exhibitions. Following a factory fire in 1926, the Newcombe name was purchased by the Montreal piano retailer and manufacturer Willis & Company Ltd.

George Weston Limited is one of North America’s largest processors and distributors of food. The company operates three subsidiaries: Loblaw Companies Limited, a grocery, drugstore and general retailer; Weston Foods, a baking company; and Choice Properties, a real estate investment trust. George Weston Ltd. owns a variety of brands and retail banners. Loblaw brands include No Name, President’s Choice, Life Brand and Joe Fresh. Loblaw stores include Loblaws, Zehrs, Your Independent Grocer, Provigo, Atlantic Superstore, Fortinos, Dominion, Independent City Market, Valu-mart, ARZ Bakery, Wholesale Club, T&T Supermarket, Real Canadian Liquorstore, Real Canadian Superstore, No Frills, Maxi, Extra Foods and Shoppers Drug Mart. In 2020, George Weston Ltd. registered $54.705 billion in revenue and $919 million in profit and held assets valued at $48.075 billion. George Weston Ltd. Is the country’s largest private-sector employer, with over 200,000 full- and part-time employees. It is a public company headquartered in Toronto and listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol WN.

Alcan Incorporated was a major Canadian aluminum mining and manufacturing corporation. From the early 1990s to the early 2000s, it was the second-largest aluminum producer in the world.The company was originally founded in 1902 as the Northern Aluminum Company Limited, located in Shawinigan, Québec. It was established as the Canadian subsidiary of the Aluminum Company of America (Alcoa), one of the founders of which invented the process for extracting aluminum from bauxite. Northern Aluminum was renamed the Aluminum Company of Canada in 1925, and in 1928, it formally detached from Alcoa. In 1966, it was again renamed, this time as Alcan Aluminum Limited (becoming Alcan Incorporated in 2001). In 2007, Alcan was purchased by the British-Australian multinational corporation Rio Tinto for $38 billion. Today, Rio Tinto continues to operate several smelters in the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region of Québec, as well as in Kitimat, British Columbia.

Companies owned by New Brunswick’s Irving family dominate the province’s natural resource industries, as well as its media, engineering and construction industries. The first Irving business was a sawmill purchased in 1881. The family now owns many companies that supply each other from different steps in the chain of production. These companies largely fall under four umbrellas: J.D. Irving Limited (whose many segments include forestry, food, construction and transportation), Brunswick News (newspapers), Irving Oil (oil refining and marketing) and Ocean Capital Holdings (real estate, radio, construction and materials). The Irving family owns Canada’s largest oil refinery, is one of the five largest landowners in North America, and employs 1 in 12 people in New Brunswick. It is one of the wealthiest families in Canada.

The Compagnie des Indes occidentales was a trading company that drove France’s colonial economy from 1664 to 1674. Its name translates to West Indies Company. King Louis XIV gave the company exclusive rights to trade and govern in all French colonies. Its territory extended from the Americas to the Caribbean and Western Africa. In addition to natural resources such as furs and sugar, the Compagnie traded enslaved people.

This company is not to be confused with the French trading company founded by John Law and renamed Compagnie des Indes in 1719.

The Bank of Canada (BoC) is the country’s central bank, a financial institution that provides banking services on behalf of the federal government. Its operations include four principal functions: to manage the country’s money supply; to act as the federal government’s agent in issuing its bonds and managing its holdings of foreign currencies; to manage various monetary policies that can influence the performance of the economy, such as interest rates; and to manage the overall financial industry in Canada and economic relations with other countries and international organizations. The Bank of Canada’s headquarters are in Ottawa.

The Canadian Pacific Railway company (CPR) was incorporated in 1881. Its original purpose was the construction of a transcontinental railway, a promise to British Columbia upon its entry into Confederation (see Railway History). The railway — completed in 1885 — connected Eastern Canada to British Columbia and played an important role in the development of the nation. Built in dangerous conditions by thousands of labourers, including 15,000 Chinese temporary workers, the railway facilitated communication and transportation across the country. Over its long history, the Canadian Pacific Railway diversified its operations. The company established hotels, shipping lines and airlines, and developed mining and telecommunications industries (see Shipping Industry; Air Transport Industry). In 2001, Canadian Pacific separated into five separate and independent companies, with Canadian Pacific Railway returning to its origins as a railway company. CP, as it is branded today, has over 22,500 km of track across Canada and the United States. It is a public company and it trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol CP. In 2020, CP reported $7.71 billion in total revenues.

This is the full-length entry about the Canadian Pacific Railway. For a plain-language summary, please see The Canadian Pacific Railway (Plain-Language Summary).

The Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, commonly known as CIBC, is the fifth largest chartered bank in Canada. It was created through the 1961 merger of two Ontario-based banks, the Canadian Bank of Commerce and the Imperial Bank of Canada — the largest merger of two chartered banks in Canada’s history. Today, CIBC operates its business in Canada and abroad through three divisions: retail and business banking, wealth management, and capital markets. CIBC is a public company that trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol CM. In 2021, CIBC registered $20.02 billion in revenue and $6.45 billion in profit and held $837.68 billion in assets. The bank employs approximately 45,282 people, who serve 11 million clients.

The Bank of Nova Scotia, commonly referred to as “Scotiabank,” is Canada’s third largest chartered bank. Incorporated in 1832, the bank has established itself as Canada’s most international bank through extensive operations throughout Latin America, the Caribbean, Central America and parts of Asia. It is also known as “Canada’s gold bank” because of its dominant position in bullion trading. The bank also operates three other business lines: personal banking, commercial banking, and wealth management. Scotiabank is a public company that trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol BNS and on the Trinidad and Tobago Stock Exchange under the symbol SBTT. In 2021, Scotiabank registered $31.25 billion in revenue and $9.96 billion in profit and held $1.18 trillion in assets. The bank employs more than 90,000 people, who serve more than 25 million customers around the world.

The Toronto-Dominion Bank, commonly known as TD, is the second largest chartered bank in Canada. The Toronto-Dominion Bank is the result of the past mergers of three financial companies: The Bank of Toronto, The Dominion Bank, and Canada Trust. The mergers began in 1955 when The Dominion Bank merged with The Bank of Toronto. This group then acquired Canada Trust in 2000, creating a new entity called TD Canada Trust. Toronto-Dominion Bank is a public company that trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol TD. In 2021, TD registered $42.69 billion in revenue and $14.30 billion in profit and held $1.73 trillion in assets. The bank employs approximately 90,000 people, who serve more than 26.8 million customers.

The Molson Coors Beverage Company (formerly Molson Coors Brewing Company) is a partly Canadian-owned enterprise and one of the world's largest beer makers. Its Canadian arm, Molson Coors Canada, is the successor to Molson Breweries, one of the country's oldest companies.

The Bank of Montreal was founded in 1817, making it Canada’s oldest incorporated bank. From its founding to the creation of the Bank of Canada in 1935, the Bank of Montreal served as Canada’s central bank. Today, the various components of the Bank of Montreal are collectively known as BMO Financial Group. BMO is Canada’s fourth largest bank by assets, and the eighth largest in North America. It offers services in three distinct areas — personal and commercial banking, wealth management, and investment banking. BMO is a public company that trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange and the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol BMO. In 2021, BMO registered $27.19 billion in revenue and $7.75 billion in profit and held $988.18 billion in assets. BMO employs more than 43,863 people who serve more than 8 million customers across Canada.

Canadian Tire Corporation, Ltd., is one of Canada’s most recognized retail chains. Founded in Toronto by brothers J.W. and A.J. Billes, the company got its start when the brothers bought the Hamilton Tire and Garage in 1922. In 1927, they incorporated the business as the Canadian Tire Corporation. Still headquartered in Toronto, the company operates a network of 1,711 stores and gas bars that extends to every province and territory except Nunavut. Canadian Tire owns Mark’s Work Wearhouse, Helly Hansen and FGL Sports, including the retail companies Sport Chek, Atmosphere and Sports Experts. It is a public company that trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol CTC. In 2021, Canadian Tire registered $16.3 billion in revenue and $1.26 billion in net income and held $21.8 billion in assets.

Founded in 1869, the T. Eaton Company Ltd., commonly known as Eaton’s, was an iconic Canadian department store with a retail presence in every province, at its height. From its beginnings as a retail store in Toronto to its eventual bankruptcy and absorption into its long-time rival, Sears Canada, Eaton’s significantly shaped Canadian shopping. The Eaton’s name and legacy persist today, from Toronto’s Eaton Centre to the red bricks incorporated into the facade of Winnipeg’s Bell MTS Place, a reminder of the former Eaton’s store that stood on the site for so long.

Media convergence is a term for two things: 1) It is when different media merge through technology. This is also known as technological convergence. 2) It is also when companies own different media outlets as part of a business strategy. This is also called media consolidation, media concentration or economic convergence.

This article is from our Toronto Feature series. Features from past programs are not updated.

Bias is when you support or oppose someone or something based on your own opinion, regardless of the evidence. Media bias is when content spread by media reflects the interests of that company or its ownership. Corporations may have a clear bias for one political party or issue. A company may have its media outlets reflect that bias. Journalists or news outlets may favour one side of an issue and reflect that bias in the way they cover stories. Bias can be overcome by being aware of it and talking about it. And by listening to people from less privileged backgrounds.