How The Times Covered the Justin Trudeau News

Times Insider explains who we are and what we do and delivers behind-the-scenes insights into how our journalism comes together.On Monday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada announced that he would resign as Liberal Party leader and the country’s prime minister, sending shock waves through the nation, which is on the cusp of economic upheaval: President-elect Donald J. Trump has pledged to impose tariffs on all United States imports from Canada on his first day in office.Matina Stevis-Gridneff jumped on the news early Monday morning, before it was even announced. Ms. Stevis-Gridneff, previously the Brussels bureau chief for The New York Times, is new to Canada, and her role: She moved to Toronto in August, and quickly submerged herself in her new beat.In an interview on Monday — for which she made time between updating The Times’s live blog and writing analysis-packed articles on what the change may mean for the country — Ms. Stevis-Gridneff explained how The Times’s Canada-based team had prepared for and reacted to the moment, and how, as someone new to Canada, she’s bringing a “global context” to coverage of the country. This interview has been edited and condensed.What was your response to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s announcement?It’s really strange how even the most anticipated news is shocking when it happens. We had actually long anticipated that this would happen. In the second half of December, we even wrote, what we call in the business, a “political obituary” for Justin Trudeau. We had already written a brief story that said he would resign, so we could be ready when it happened.We knew over the holiday season that the prime minister would likely be reflecting on his future, and coming to that conclusion. He was under tremendous pressure, and it became increasingly difficult to see how his position would be tenable. Still, when it actually happens, it’s a really big moment.We took a minute to reflect on the fact that this is a historic moment for Canada. We’re very lucky that we have a great team. When news like this breaks, it’s a tremendous moment for the newsroom.You’re a newcomer, both to Canada and to your role. What has it been like adapting during such a tumultuous time?You jump in the deep end. It’s a fascinating, immersive way of learning what’s going on. I think what I bring to the table is more global context: Who was Justin Trudeau to the world? He stood for something, an era of politics, that seems to be in rapid decline. That external perspective is infused in our copy.What kind of skills do journalists need to bring to breaking political news?No single correspondent has all the qualities you need to cover a moment like this. That’s why we’re so fortunate to have a team. Someone like our colleague Ian Austen, who is a longtime Canadian politics correspondent, has a real command of the intricacies of the political system.We also have Vjosa Isai in Toronto, and she is a zillennial, able to keep eyes and ears on multiple platforms simultaneously. And Norimitsu Onishi, one of our most seasoned international correspondents, is based in Montreal, and is able to offer deeply thoughtful cultural observations and analysis in this big moment. It takes a lot of different skills and backgrounds to be on top of a story like this. We’re lucky to be part of a news organization that can provide that, including all the behind-the-scenes heroes, like editors.And we just need to be really fast. We need to be sourced. That’s something we’ll all bring in together.What has Monday looked like, from a reporting perspective?We knew around 9 a.m. that Trudeau planned to resign around 10:45 a.m. Ian, who has covered Trudeau since the beginning, was in Ottawa, where it was minus 13 Celsius, waiting for the announcement.We had to quickly publish a few dozen words, saying that we were anticipating this happening this morning. It’s like an orchestra: We went into a live briefing, and then we started explaining what we understood was going to unfold. What is really important in those moments is to not say what you don’t know.One of the key questions we had was: OK, he’s going to announce he’s stepping down. Is he going to tell us how his successor will be chosen?The prime minister said he wanted a nationwide, robust election for his successor. This has great implications. We had to explain all this to our readers. He suspended Parliament. What does that mean? It’s going to take weeks for his successor to be selected. Even before Trudeau started speaking, we were trying to wrap our heads around the ramifications. Now that he’s spoken, we’re staying on top of the reaction.We need our readers, the next day, to be able to read something more analytical, that explains why Trudeau made this decision, and where this leaves Canada as it faces off with Trump.Why is this such an important moment in Canada?Canada is in the room whenever anything important is decided on a multilateral level. It’s also at the forefront of Trump’s presidency:He has threatened to impose tariffs that would send the Canadian economy into a recession. Canada and the United States are each other’s biggest trading partners, and closest allies in a relationship that doesn’t have a parallel anywhere else in the world.Covering the world for New York Times readers is part of our mission and, of course, Canada is part of that mission. But its proximity to the United States and its position — on its own, in global politics and in the global economy — make it a really important focus for us.